Finding Fortitude
by supermegie12
Summary: Where do you find strength when you don't have any? It has to come from somewhere, right? This is a story about finding strength in others and yourself. It's also about tattoos and feelings. Lots of tattoos and feelings. Law x OC Slow burn? Kinda? Idk anymore lol. Enjoy!
1. In Which Fate Rears It's Ugly Head

**A/N: I've been writing for years and this is the first story I like enough to publish. I have uuhhh... like 100 pages already written of this? And I would really like some feed back. I'll be posting periodically what I finalize. If people actually like this, that'd be great! But honestly I just have to get this out there, haha.**

 **This will take place before he's introduced and carry on through the manga. Since he doesn't have much cannon before the time skip, I'm making 98% of it up lol Hope you enjoy!**

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Chapter 1:

Alternately named: In which there is fluorescent lighting

* * *

Law really was trying to get into the new medical journals he had just picked up. They were just about as interesting as they come too. They talked about devil fruit users and how logia types react to different levels of seastone. It was _interesting_!

But not the most interesting thing in his infirmary.

Law let out a sigh as he found himself reading the same sentence three times. He put the journal down and decided it was stupid to ignore it anymore. He wasn't getting anywhere until the girl they found woke up.

Law already knew who she was. Her bounty was quite large for someone so small. Law picked the poster off his metal desk and gave it a once over. Again.

The girl's name was Lilith or as the government nicknamed her, "Ship Sinker". Law could understand her nickname. They had watched her destroy 6 ships before something happened and she nose-dived into the ocean. But why was her name _only_ Lilith? Was her surname a secret? Or maybe she didn't have one?

The government listed her as a known devil fruit user, but didn't list which one. It didn't even list what she could do outside of her devil fruit. There was no indicator as to how she fought. Period.

" _They always list what they can do,"_ Law couldn't help but think every time he read over it. There was so much mystery surrounding this girl and Law was wrapped up in it like a good novel.

Her picture had caught his attention too. It was just a head shot of her smiling from ear to ear and her deep blue eyes were sparkling like the open waters of the Grand Line. Freckles dusted her cheeks and her nose (when he had examined her before he noted that they decorated the rest of her body as well). Her wavy hair was a soft blond color and her olive skin was lightly tanned. Even though Law could tell she was underweight in this picture, she was…

" _Glowing with life,"_ was all he could come up with.

But in the present, her appearance was unnerving, if he was honest. Lilith was now lying on a medical cot with lacerations and bruises adorning her skin. Her black jeans were cut up and bloody and the shirt that she had been wearing was so far gone the doctor had thrown it away. He had slipped her in a white shirt that was much too big for her after tightly wrapping her torso. She had several bruised ribs that would take weeks to heal. It looked like she had gone through hell before she took her dive into the ocean.

But after just 10 hours on the ship, she had started healing _very fast._

Law had done plenty of testing trying to figure out anything that could shed some light on what was going on, but he had gotten nothing. She was normal, as far he could tell; just healing faster than humanly possible. Despite her small frame, she seemed to have more than enough energy to accelerate her healing process.

Maybe that was why she was worth 57 million beli.

But his mind was quickly drawn back to what was under the shirt. It wasn't her body that had Law's attention, no. It was the black tattoos that decorated the left side of her body. There was a lot of black inked symbols and pictures of random things like a clock or a ship. Most of it was flowers of different kinds and simple space fillers. There was an inscription tattooed on her spine as well, but it was written in a language Law didn't recognize. Mostly, it seemed to be just random things, but Law knew that all tattoos had a story behind them and he really wanted to know hers.

To say Law liked tattoos would be an understatement.

Law was brought out of his thoughts when he heard a low moan. The doctor watched as the girl slowly came to. She blinked her eyes a few times, squinted at the florescent lights above her, and let out another dissatisfied moan.

"Always florescent. Why's it always florescent," Law heard her mumble under her breath. She slowly looked around her. When her eyes landed on Law, she closed her eyes and let out another dissatisfied moan.

"What are the last things you remember?"

Lilith closed her eyes and let out a long sigh as Law picked up her clipboard.

"Let's see… I had been destroying the 6th ship in the fleet and I was almost out of energy. My body was at its breaking point and the captain of that ship was out for blood so I did what any rational person would do; I expended the last of my energy to destroy the ship and him so they couldn't continue business. Then I hit the salt water and it drained the last of my energy. I should assume you saved me, yah?"

Law let out a low hum as he scratched out some words on her clipboard.

"What's your name?"

"It's Lilith... Why did you save me?"

Law said nothing but he did shift his eyes up for a few moments to watch her. She popped one open and studied him. She really looked at him this time; he was tall and lean, with a bright white lab coat on over a yellow and black hoodie. A fuzzy white hat sat on his head which covered his black hair which extended into long sideburns. He also had a goatee and a few earrings in his ears. When she met his golden eyes again, her eyes widened in shock. She would be stupid to not recognize the Surgeon of Death.

 _Trafalgar Law_

The Heart Pirates were a new rookie group going around causing _absolute mayhem_ ; taking down marine ships and taking from towns. The captain though, was known to be straight up sadistic. His devil fruit powers are something to be reckoned with. THere were so many rumors going around as to what he did exactly, but two things were for certain-

There was no way to escape him when he used them and

He was not merciful when he used them.

Lilith's blood ran cold and she scrambled further back on the bed. She pressed her back flush against the wall as she tried to put as much space between her and the Surgeon. Her heart was pounding and, on instinct, the air around her darkened.

"Is that your devil fruit? Darkness?"

Lilith said nothing as she watched the Surgeon with cautious eyes. His gaze was calm and he seemed very relaxed at the moment, but Lilith knew how deceiving looks could be. She quickly activated her Kenbunshoku Haki and her face scrunched up in confusion. There was no malice towards her that she could detect. Even if he was hiding it, she knew she would sense it.

" _Perks of natural Haki users,"_ she mused to herself trying to convince herself she was safe for the moment.

Lilith forced herself to relax and crossed her legs under her.

"If we're going to play 20 questions, do you mind if I have some water?"

Law nodded and filled a paper cup at the sink. He pulled up his chair and sat down next to her cot as he passed the cup to her. She quickly drank it all and let out a satisfied _"Ahhhh"_. If Law was curious before, he was enthralled now. She was by far the most expressive person he had met. He couldn't help but wonder how old she was.

"Your devil fruit?" Law asked after a few moments of silence. She jumped and mumbled an apology.

"Sorry, sorry. These lights make me a little sluggish. Why does every infirmary have them? Isn't this place supposed to be where you save lives? This phony lighting is the exact opposite of life," Lilith paused her rant as she ran her hand through her hair and took a deep breath. Law said nothing, but Lilith wasn't counting on it.

"You aren't going to like it, but I don't know the name of my devil fruit. Neither does the government apparently but from what I've gathered I can control energy. I absorb it from anything that gives off energy, like these _God damned lights_. But just like normal people, when I expel energy, I get tired. When I expel a lot, like to take down 6 ships, I pass out. That's what happened."

"You willingly forced yourself to pass out to destroy that ship?"

"Yah. They're slavers. If I didn't, they wouldn't have stopped," Lilith replied matter-of-factly.

Law was taken back by her words, although it didn't show. That really wasn't something he was expecting. It was extremely notable though.

" _To give her own life for others… That's just unheard of. And slightly stupid."_

Law was brought out of his thoughts by her soft laugh.

"Yah, I bet my wanted poster doesn't say that about me, does it? Somehow the Government leaves that bit out," Lilith said sarcastically, as if she had been reading Law's mind.

Lilith was looking at her hands now. Her face was somber and Law could only wonder what was going on through her head. He decided to change the subject.

"What do you have against my lights?"

"Oh, haha," Lilith scratched the back of her head with a sheepish smile.

"I absorb light energy unconsciously when I'm low on energy and florescent light just don't do it for me. It's like a, uh, pseudo- like eating tofu when you need a steak. Or wine when you need water."

Law raised an eyebrow at this and scribbled something else down.

"I'm sorry my lights aren't _doing it for you_ ," Law said with a small smirk on his face, which earned another light chuckle from Lilith.

"There's really no other way to explain it. It's like needing toe curling sex but all you got is your hand."

Lilith let out a full bodied laugh at her own joke which made Law's smirk grow. It morphed into a frown when Lilith started coughing and holding her ribs. Law quickly stood up and pressed a stethoscope to her chest. Luckily there was no fluid in her lungs, so Law got her another cup of water. She gave him a thankful smile and slowly sipped it.

"So why did you save me?"

"My crew's a sucker for a damsel in distress."

Law watched with fascination as Lilith's face morphed from relaxed and content to something between anger and frustration in a matter of seconds.

"I am _not_ a damsel in distress! I had the situation under control! My death would have even been on my terms! I don't know if I'll get a chance like that again," Lilith said as she shot Law a pointed stare. Law decided she wasn't angry per se, she just seemed to be frustrated. He simply raised his eyebrows at the statement.

"Would you rather be dead?"

Lilith's gaze immediately softened at the question, not a trace of fear like he was aiming for. She merely gave him a shrug in response. She took a long sip from her water and Law figured she wasn't going to give him a direct answer on that.

"So, what now? I should be good once you get me up on the deck. How far is the nearest island?"

"My navigator puts us 5 days out. We're following the currents to conserve on energy. I'm sure you know all about that."

Lilith rolled her eyes at the captain.

"Well fuck that's a long time. I didn't know I was so far from land. I can help out around the ship. I'm pretty good at just about anything. Except for super hard manual labor."

"You're willing to work?"

"Yah, can't expect you to keep me here for free and I'm definitely not sleeping with anyone."

Law smirked at her remark and went back to his desk. When he glanced over her wanted poster, another question hit him.

"What's your full name?"

"It's just Lilith. That's all I got."

Law hummed as he added that to the mystery. This girl was full of conundrums to which apparently she couldn't even answer.

"If you'd like to shower, there's one right over there."

Lilith hopped off the cot and started over to the fully enclosed shower.

"Can I take off these bandages?"

"Sure. We'll rewrap you after you get out."

Lilith walked into the shower and shut the door behind her. She pulled off her clothes and bandages and stepped into the water. She quickly cleaned herself and then turned to her clothes. The panties came clean quickly and the shirt wasn't even dirty, but her high waisted jeans were a disaster.

The legs of the jeans were ripped and permanently stained with blood. At least they were black. She turned off the water and released a small bit of energy, drying her instantly. She dried the rest of her clothes and slipped them back on.

"Uh, Doctor Trafalgar, does it necessarily have to be you who wraps me back up, or can I do it?"

Lilith received silence for a few moments.

"I'll do it."

Lilith let out a sigh, but tried her hardest to convince herself that the _Surgeon of Death_ was nothing but a professional doctor. She snorted at that thought and figured she was just going to have to stomach it.

" _At least he's young and good looking._ "

Lilith pulled the large white shirt over her head. It barely covered her panties but it felt like she was wearing a bag. She inwardly cursed at herself. She had always been small. She'd never really been able to eat well so she hadn't ever been filled out like she would have wanted to be. It proved to be a slight disadvantage when she fought as well. She was forced to rely on her swiftness, not strength. She won most of her fights with speed, her devil fruit, and her incredible wit.

She laughed under her breath at her own thoughts. She knew she was nothing but lucky when it came down to it. Between gaining Kenbunshoku Haki at an early age and finding her devil fruit, she knew that if she didn't catch her victims by surprise, she wouldn't win.

" _If only I still had knives,"_ she mindlessly thought as she stepped out from the shower. Law was still scribbling at his desk so she sat down on the edge of the cot. Her grumbles caught Law's attention and he glanced back at her. It took everything in him not to laugh.

She was grumbling at her feet, which were freely swinging. It wasn't that she was super short per say (she was 5-9 flat footed), but the cot was higher off the ground than normal. Law was 6 foot 3 after all.

"Problem, Miss Lilith?"

"Are you gonna wrap me up so I can get some _real_ light? Or do you intend on making me suffer?"

"I hate you inform you, but you're in a submarine."

Lilith's face immediately scrunched up and she popped up from the cot with her arms flailing.

"What! What do you mean _submarine_? What kind of fresh hell is this! I'm a devil fruit user! _You're_ a devil fruit user! This is _suicide_!"

Law let out a low chuckle.

"I can assure you that you are completely safe on my sub."

Lilith's face didn't relax any as she crossed her arms across her chest. The small flinch of pain didn't get past Law though.

"Let's get you wrapped back up then we can head to the mess hall."

Law pulled out some bandages and Lilith's face quickly dropped. She let out a small huff and quickly pulled the white shirt off, but covered her chest with her arm in a small grasp for dignity. Law got to wrapping her stomach, to insure the ribs healed properly, but his mind went right back to the tattoos.

"You have a lot of tattoos."

"Yah. You're one to talk though."

Law let out a small chuckle.

"After the first one, they get addicting."

"Haha, yah. They sure do."

Law finished wrapping her torso, stopping the bandages right under her chest, and stood to his full height. Lilith couldn't help but crane her neck to look up at him.

"Gods, you're tall."

"Shouldn't you put your shirt back on?"

Lilith broke out in a blush that went from her cheeks down to her neck, which got Law to smirk again.

"Do you mind if I use your bandages to wrap my chest?"

Law's smirk didn't falter as he handed over the bandages. Lilith turned from him and took a few steps away, in an attempt to keep herself decent. She quickly (and expertly) wrapped her chest.

"Do you have scissors?"

"What for?"

"These jeans are absolutely disgusting."

Law hummed and handed her a pair and Lilith quickly cut the jeans to make shorts. They came to her upper thigh and were slightly shorter than she intended, but it sure as hell beat wearing blood stained jeans.

Now she just had slightly less blood stained shorts.

She handed the scissors back over, handle first and Law set them down on the desk, but kept his eyes on Lilith as she tried tucking in the shirt to the new shorts. Her brows scrunched together in frustration when the bandages started to get in the way.

"Why are you so expressive?"

"Hmm?" Lilith answered as she finished tucking the shirt in and smoothed it out a bit. She glanced up at him when she was done and gave him another shrug. A frown threatened to show on his face. Law couldn't help it. She was getting under his skin slightly. She was _literally_ shrugging his questions off.

Law took in a deep breath and decided to lead them off to the mess hall instead of inquiring further. Now just wasn't the time.

* * *

When she got past being surrounded by her one major weakness, being in the sub was nice. It didn't jostle around like a normal ship and the cool metal felt a hell of a lot better than wood on bare feet. Lilith knew she was going to miss the outside sun though. She could already feel it.

It was like a nap when you needed a full 8 hours.

And boy could she use a full 8 hours right about now.

" _Or some toe curling sex,"_ Lilith thought as she chanced a glance at Law who was walking beside her down the halls of the sub.

Lilith was not happy to see that fluorescent lights carried out into the rest of the sub. They were a bit softer than the ones in the infirmary, so she supposed they were better. Not great, but better. As they approached the mess hall, loud shouts were heard and Law swung open the door.

Everyone's attention was immediately on Lilith and she froze.

It was like a quiet standoff and heat returned to Lilith's face. There weren't a lot of people, only about 15 people total, but the intensity from their stares was immense.

"Shachi-ya, go get Miss Lilith something to eat from the kitchen."

A man in a poufy green hat and sunglasses shot up and disappeared behind some doors.

"Hello, how are you feeling?"

Lilith's eyes went wide at the talking polar bear. He was wearing an orange jumpsuit and had sharp teeth like something from a horror film.

"Y-you're a talking polar bear."

"I'm sorry," he apologized and looked like he was going to cry. Lilith's demeanor did a 180. She immediately perked up and rushed to him on the other side of the benched table. She pet him on the head, in an attempt to comfort the bear.

"Oh no, no! I didn't mean it in a bad way. It's super cool!"

He still looked up at her with sad eyes and her face dropped. She had no real idea what to do.

"Oh don't mind him. He gets sad at just about anything. He's super emotional. I'm Penguin by the way. What's your name?"

"I'm Lilith! It's very nice to meet you. Thank you guys for saving me."

She stood awkwardly as the crew stared at her, but she gave them a warm smile.

"Lilith… isn't that the name of Adam's first wife?"

"Yeah, she was a demon though."

"It actually translates to night demon and she was supposedly the wife of Lucifer. They lady who gave me the name though, just thought it was pretty."

Silence followed Lilith's explanation for a few moments before Penguin spoke up.

"It is pretty sounding, so I can see why she would name you that."

A light blush dusted her cheeks as she gave him a large grin.

"Thank you, Penguin-san."

The man's eyes burst into hearts as he started rattling off more compliments, but Lilith couldn't make them out. Law took a seat just as Shachi brought her out some kind of meat over rice. She kindly took it and even gave a small bow to the man who only managed to stumble over his words. Lilith didn't acknowledge it though and took a seat and started to eat. Sadly, she got no real time to eat before the crew's curiosity took over.

"So why were you destroying those ships?" a random pirate asked her.

"They were slavers and I kill slavers," Lilith replied smoothly.

"That sure is something," another commented.

"Yah, I guess. I was caught off guard by the ships though. They were made of this darker wood. They were black and took a lot more to destroy than normal ships. And they were manned by less. The whole thing made me nervous, honestly."

Lilith took the pause to shovel some food into her mouth.

"You had good reason to be."

Lilith shot a glare to the man who spoke but didn't bother to reply.

"Do you always go after slavers?" some random guy asked.

"Yah."

"Why?" She heard Law ask. Lilith stopped mid bite and met Law's gaze.

"Because I used to be a slave," Lilith answered as she dropped her gaze back to her plate and kept eating.

The entire hall was silent at her answer.

"How long?" Law asked.

"6 years," Lilith answered without hesitation. She paid the stares no mind. She was used to this.

"Do you kill the slaves too?" Law asked.

Lilith didn't answer right away. It was obvious Law had the last few questions planned out. She took a deep breath.

"There weren't any on the ships I just destroyed. The ships seemed to be new, so I think they were out to buy."

"What do you do if you come across slaves?"

"I try to save them of course. But mostly they're so far gone it's pointless," Lilith answered matter-of-factly and received a bit of backlash because of it.

"So what? You kill them?"

"Why would you do that?"

"I thought you wanted to save them."

"Why would you kill them if you're trying to save them?"

Lilith took her time swallowing her food and kept her gaze steady on her plate as the questions slowed. She didn't speak until it was silent.

"I kill them because I wish someone had the humanity to kill me all those years ago."

The mess hall was quiet again at her morbid response. Lilith kept eating though, scraping her plate clean. Suddenly, the polar bear started crying and latched himself onto Lilith making her flail a bit at the contact.

"You're doing such a good thing! You're too nice to have gone through something so sad!"

Lilith gave an awkward laugh as she tried to pry herself from the grasp but soon Penguin and Shachi and a few others joined in. She tried desperately to wiggle free but it was Law's voice that pulled them away.

"Get off her and go get her some seconds."

The group quickly dispersed and a new plate was set in front of Lilith. She wasted no time digging in and Penguin spoke up.

"So, Lilith-chan. What are your powers?"

"Energy manipulation. I can absorb or expel it."

"So you just blow ships up?"

Lilith nodded with her mouth full of food.

"Is that it? You just use your powers?" Shachi asked.

Lilith shook her head as she swallowed the rest of her food.

"No. I'm pretty great with a knife and my Kenbunshoku Haki is a weapon in and of itself."

"You use Haki?" Law asked. This was extremely interesting. He had barely gotten comfortable with his Busoshoku Haki. He had barely tapped into his Kenbunshoku Haki though.

"Yah. I've always been able to use it."

"That's impressive."

"Yah, comes in handy when I need answers."

"What do you do besides blow up ships?"

"Like, for money? Extract information, find people, kill people. Really just depends on where the money is," Lilith said as she flashed Law a smirk. The table let out a collective laugh and she continued scraping her plate clean.

"So where are you guys from?"

"The North Blue!"

"Oh. It's cold there, yah?"

"Sure is. It's nice here in the sub. It isn't as hot."

Lilith flashed Penguin a smile.

"I have things I need to take care of, so I expect everyone to start their nightly duties soon. There will be a meeting in the morning."

Law stood up from the bench and headed out as his crew wished him a good night. Lilith paid little mind as she finished off the second plate of food. It didn't take long for the rest of the crew to disperse. A full bodied yawn sprung from Lilith and Shachi gave a small laugh.

"You must be exhausted. Do you need help getting back to the infirmary?"

"That'd be great Mister Shachi. Guess I haven't caught up on energy yet, yah?"

"I'm surprised you're awake. I'd be sleeping as much as I could."

Lilith shot him a large smile as she followed him into the hallway. They quickly made their way to the infirmary. Shachi opened the door for her and she flopped down on the cot.

"Sleep well, Miss Lilith," Shachi said, but Lilith was already asleep.


	2. In Which There Are Tattoos

**A/N: Here's another. It's me trying to introduce Lilith and give the other Heart Pirates more character? Enjoy!**

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Chapter 2  
Alternate Name: In which the author has already run out of chapter names

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Lilith blinked her eyes open as sleep slowly slipped from her. She had vague memories of a flower field and snakes and something about balloons but her dream was beyond her grasp at this point. She rolled over on her back and stretched herself before her eyes shot over to Law's desk.

He was leaning back in his chair watching her with amused eyes. She narrowed hers.

"Is there a reason you're watching me sleep?"

"You're just as expressive when you sleep," Law said with amusement laced in his voice. He watched as confusion flittered across her face.

"I don't enjoy being watched in my sleep."

Lilith only got an amused smirk in response and so she rolled her eyes.

"How long have I been asleep for?"

"For about 10 hours. It's almost 6am."

Lilith let out a hum and rubbed her eyes. She could still feel a film in her head from the damn fluorescent lights. After she finished, she looked to his desk.

"What are you working on over there?"

"Just reading through a few medical journals."

"Is this what the Surgeon of Death does in his free time?" Lilith said with a light laugh.

"Did you expect something else?"

Lilith gave him a shrug as she hopped off the cot and walked to the desk. She still had a small smile on her face. The aura around Law was nothing but calm and content. Other people's emotions tended to rub off on her, so she was calm and content even though Law was a stranger to her.

"Did you become a doctor or a pirate first?" Lilith asked after a few moments of silence.

"I was a doctor first."

"Why?"

Instead of immediately answering, Law looked at her face. To his surprise, she was relaxed. She cocked her head slightly at his silence, not knowing what he was thinking.

"My father was the best doctor in the North Blue and he taught me everything I know. I fell in love with it at an early age."

"So you enjoy it?"

"Of course."

"Then why are you a pirate?"

Law didn't plan on answering that question and he hardened his gaze at her. She was walking into dangerous waters and Law didn't like it. Lilith gave him a small smile despite his sudden hostility.

"If you weren't a pirate, would you be a full time doctor instead?"

Law was caught off guard, not by her question, but because he really didn't have an answer to that question. In his mind, there was no reality where he didn't need to be a pirate to take his revenge. Lilith's smile turned down as she saw bright and pale red and a bit of amber swirl round Law's head.

" _Whatever tied this man to piracy isn't something he could talk about,"_ Lilith thought to herself.

"You don't have to answer me Doctor Trafalgar. I'm more interested in why a doctor has death tattooed on his hands, honestly," Lilith said with a laugh to try and lighten the mood. To her surprise, the colors surrounding Law faded and he instinctively flexed his hands.

"I'm the Surgeon of Death. It only seems fitting."

Lilith dramatically rolled her eyes and was about to inquire further but Law beat her to it.

"Why are you so open with how you feel?"

Lilith cocked an eyebrow at him. She debated giving him another shrug, but decided against it. If she was to be on this ship for 5 days without doing much of anything, she probably should answer some of his questions.

"I'm not a fan of liars and games, so it's just something that I've developed over the years."

"But showing those kinds of things, especially after what you've been through, isn't a practical reaction, isn't it?"

"I refuse to let my past dictate who I am," Lilith said with no hesitation. She continued on after leaned her hips against the desk.

"I refuse to be a slave to my past. I want to be free. Maybe I over compensate, sure, but I refuse to let what happened dictate who I am. I would rather be open and honest with myself than keep things bottled up. I was bottled up for so long and had no idea who I was. I don't want to lose that again."

Law's eyes had widened slightly. That thought had never occurred to him. He was hell bent on avenging Corazon that nothing else really crossed his mind. Was he letting his past control him? Was this who he really was? Would he be different if his family was alive?

Law mentally shook his head. What Lilith was had nothing to do with him. He quickly shifted the conversation.

"Is that what your tattoos are then?"

Lilith flashed him a smile, covering the fact that she could see his inner turmoil as clear as day. Or at least as clear as the red-green-blue haze around his head was.

"I got my tattoos because I enjoy them, yah."

Law saw the half lie without the help of Haki (his was nowhere near developed enough to see the hazes). Law was interrupted by Lilith untucking her shirt but stopped half way through.

"Oh shit, I forgot my stomach is wrapped so I can't show you."

"We should probably take them off, actually."

Lilith was quick to throw her shirt aside and pulled the bandages around her torso off. Law, shifting into doctor mode, pulled Lilith closer to his chair so he could stay seated while looking her over. Even though he expected it, he was still surprised to find Lilith's traumas almost gone.

" _Bruising isn't noticeable, and cuts are almost nonexistent,"_ Law mentally recorded as he ran his hands over her stomach. His lanky fingers poked and pushed at her rib cage but she seemed to be healed. Another hour, Law guessed, and he would release her if she was a normal patient.

" _It hasn't even been 24 hours and she's almost completely healed,"_ Law mused with medical fascination.

"Is it your powers that allow you to heal this fast?"

"Yah. My power has a ton of uses, but I mostly just blow up ships."

"Can you heal others?"

"Yah, although it's a bit more tricky. I can pass energy wherever I want to. Watch," Lilith said as she slowly (and cautiously) reached out to gently cup his jaw. She ran a slender thumb over his cheek and Law could feel energy seeping into him.

Everything slowly came into focus around him. His peripherals were no longer blurry and the room was lit like it was a midsummer's day. He could feel the energy sit just under the skin on his face as he watched her with wide open eyes. His mind calmed down, his breathing slowed down, and he could feel his heartbeat even out.

He felt so peaceful.

And yet he had never felt so alive. But it wasn't Earth shattering like he thought it would be. It was gentle fuzz below his skin where he assumed the energy was. It was the most peace Law had felt since his family was alive.

But sadly, he could also feel a small film over his eyes, like something was slightly off.

Lilith gave him a small smile when she saw the colors around him swirl between a baby blue and soft green.

"Is this how you always feel?" Law softly asked much to his displeasure. He was not a soft spoken man. Lilith let out a light laugh as she shook her head.

"No, it's only when I absorb energy. And this is with the fluorescent lighting. If I was outside, you would feel a bigger buzz and it wouldn't feel like you're in a slight haze."

Law stared at her for a few moments as he attempted to get himself under control again.

"I apologize for my fluorescent lights then. I can see how it would be uncomfortable."

Lilith let out a string of giggles and pulled her hand from him.

"Thank you, Doctor Trafalgar."

Law hummed in response as his mind worked a mile a minute. For some reason Lilith's personality made a hell of a lot more sense as he experienced her powers first hand. But now he was starting to question himself. What was the point of holding onto all that hatred? Why was he carrying around the death of his family? Why was he carrying the burden of Corazon's death? Wasn't he the one who told Law to be free?

Law's mind tried to quickly shove those ideas away. He had loved them and they were taken from him. He was going to avenge them. _He had to._ Doflamingo was going to pay for what he had done. The Government was going to pay for what they had done.

He would not let them down!

But did he have to close himself off and lose himself in the process? Not even his crew knew the full story. They joined him in hopes of freedom but few even knew he was after revenge. When he _really_ thought about it, he realized the only person who knew his full story was Doflamingo.

" _Doflamingo,"_ Law thought as his face scrunched up into a frown. Lilith panicked as she saw a fire red haze light up around his face. She spoke in a rush to try and calm him.

"I know it can be a little overwhelming. The pure energy tends to clean out the unimportant static-buffer your mind naturally creates and I'm sure a lot of things are coming up. We can talk about tattoos some other time so you can-"

"No," Law said much more hastily than he intended. He needed a distraction though. He needed one in a bad way. His thoughts were going exactly where he didn't want them.

"I'm no psychiatrist, but bottling things up isn't a good thing, yah?"

Law took a deep breath and shook his head.

"I simply do not wish to travel down that road tonight, Miss Lilith."

Lilith's face dropped at the sad hues of deep blue that surrounded his head now. There was still an underlying red to it still.

" _Sad anger is the worst,"_ Lilith thought with a mental frown.

"You're right. I'm sorry. I should have asked. I-"

"No. This is interesting. It gives me a better insight into your powers. Can we talk about your tattoos?"

Lilith gave him a toothy grin and turned around.

"My spine tattoo was the first one I got. It reads _'If I whet my glittering sword, and mine hand take hold judgment: I will render vengeance to mine enemies, and reward them that hate me.'_."

Law let out a deep chuckle at the quote. He leaned forward on his chair to get a better look at it. The craftsmanship on it was impeccable. The lines were smooth and there was no scarring at all.

"Did you have your powers before or after this?"

"Before. That's why none of my tattoos have scarring on them."

Law took a closer look at the designs that went from her left shoulder down to her left ribcage, then down her left side and disappeared under her shorts. It was just a collage of flowers and random things, but lo-and-behold, there was no tattoo scarring.

It was just beautiful ink colored into her skin. It was mostly black with a touch of color in the flowers. All of it was well done and quite frankly, Law was impressed. He's never seen tattooing done this well. At least not on such a large scale.

Law ran the pads of his fingers over the tattoos, as if trying to confirm what his eyes saw, but quickly retracted his hand.

"I'm sorry I-"

Lilith gave him a grin over her shoulder.

"Don't be! I'm really proud of them. I love how they look even though they look weird without the scarring."

"They most certainly do not look weird. The lack of scarring gives the illusion that the tattoos are an actual part of your body."

Lilith's grin grew at his compliment and a light blush dusted her face, but Law was still staring at her skin. His sight wasn't as heightened as it was when Lilith initially gave him extra energy, but he still caught the sight of a scar under the tattoos.

In fact, the more he looked, the more scars he could see. They seemed to be scars from what looked like knives sitting just under the tattoos. They all varied in length and size and some even looked to be burn scars. Law leaned in to get a better look and Lilith quickly pulled her shirt back on.

Law was speaking before he could stop himself.

"There are scars under the tattoos," Law stated rather than asked. The scars were faint, but they were there none-the-less. Lilith's grin was gone and Law realized too late what those scars were from.

" _If her powers could heal her and leave no traces, then the wounds came before she ate the devil fruit. I wondered if I should ask or just let it be…"_

"They're from when I was a slave. When I got my devil fruit, I tried my hardest to get rid of them completely, but the deeper and older ones were beyond my ability."

"Did you get the tattoos to cover the scars?"

There was slight hesitation but Lilith answered much to Law's surprise.

"Sort of. The spine tattoo wasn't to cover anything up, being my first one. And like you said, tattoos are addicting. It was more of a happy accident."

Lilith gave a dry laugh and Law frowned slightly (the effects of her powers were starting to wear off).

"Why do you have mostly flowers?"

Lilith gave him a shrug.

"I've collected different flowers from the different places I've been. There aren't two of the same flowers on me, so that's sort of interesting. Besides, flowers are pretty and scars aren't."

Law's frown didn't let up and he looked into her eyes. There was a sadness in her eyes that was too close to home for him. Without giving it too much thought, Law pulled off his hoodie and black tank top.

Lilith's eyes immediately sought out the beautiful tribal style heart on his chest. He had similar heart tattoos where his shoulder met his arm, although they were smaller. His jolly roger sat in the middle of the heart on his chest. It was beautiful and quite a work of art.

Lilith wouldn't admit it, but his misdirection was working.

"That's a beautiful tattoo, but you know I have to ask."

Law quirked an eyebrow as he leaned back in his chair with an arm resting on the back.

"Which came first; the heart tattoo, or the Heart Pirates?"

Law couldn't help but smirk at how insightful Lilith was.

"The tattoo. It's a tribute to the man who helped me when no one else would. I named my pirates in honor of him as well."

Lilith gave him a sad smile but her eyes shifted to the slight discolorations on his skin. Her eyes widened when she saw the scars that littered his body as well.

"Scars are not something to be ashamed of. They remind us of where we were," Law stated matter-of-factly, knowing exactly where her eyes had gone.

Lilith shook her head.

"For men, sure. Scars are trophies for you. They're tough and manly. But no man wants a woman who has them."

Law snorted -yes snorted- at her comment.

"Who ever told you that, is no man. I find scars on a woman lovely."

Lilith raised a delicate eyebrow at his comment and she tried to fight down her smirk.

"Is that what determines if you sleep with a woman or not?"

Lilith's smirk couldn't be stopped when Law (playfully) narrowed his eyes at her. She waved her hands up in a mock defense.

"No, no. I can see it! You have them all line up in the bar and you tell them to give you their best scar story!"

Law laughed at her comment and Lilith was grinning from ear to ear.

"I don't, but I'll keep that in mind next time. It'll save me plenty of time."

Lilith shook her head, still with a smile on her face.

"I'd just beat them out anyways."

Law shot her a devilishly handsome smirk and Lilith broke out in an embarrassed blush as soon as the words left her mouth.

"T-that's, uh, not what I meant!"

Law couldn't help but chuckle at how likable Lilith was. No matter what she was doing, it was hard to find a real reason to not like her. Later, that would probably worry Law, but for the moment, he was content.

Surprisingly content with a stranger aboard his sub.

Lilith awkwardly stood there as she tucked in her shirt again.

" _She's cute,"_ Law found himself realizing. With her too-big shirt tucked in, make-shift shorts, and her small demeanor. But there was something else about her- an air of confidence maybe? Like a underlying fearlessness in everything she did.

" _It probably has to do with how transparent she is,"_ Law realized after a few more moments. She was open for the world to see and it didn't seem to bother her in the slightest.

"Well, since you're healing up extremely well, why don't we go get breakfast?"

Lilith gave him a nod and they went back out to the galley.

* * *

The galley was just as loud as it had been the evening before. Lilith wasn't phased this time though.

"Where's the food?" Lilith asked Law and he pointed to a door on the far side. Lilith quickly slipped in and looked around. It wasn't a large kitchen, but shit was it dirty. There were stains just about everywhere and dirty dishes in the sink. It looked like no one really paid this area any attention other than around meal times.

After looking past the mess, the kitchen was medium sized. It held a fridge, a freezer, a large stove and oven, with the rest being counters and cabinets. Lilith walked over to the stove to see a large pot of oatmeal. There was fruit cut up as well so Lilith grabbed a bowl, scooped a bit of oatmeal in the bottom, and covered the rest in fruit.

Okay, so it was mostly fruit.

Lilith came back outside to see Law standing at the end of the benched table. She quietly slipped in between the polar bear and Shachi.

"As you know, we won't make landfall for another 4 days. Miss Lilith has promised to help out until we get there. If anyone needs her help, then ask her. I hope you don't mind cleaning today. The kitchen and the engine room are where I would like you to focus."

Lilith gave him a slight frown but didn't voice any of her concern.

"I know you're technically healed, but I don't want you to push yourself, Miss Lilith. Jed-ya, I want you to help her out and keep an eye on her. Make sure to clean this room as well. It's gross."

A young man, maybe 18 if Lilith had to guess, nodded his head in a super serious kind of way. Lilith almost rolled her eyes. The dynamic of a crew was something she had never quite understood. She always had problems with hierarchy of any kind.

Even with the gang who had helped to train her, she had never been able to fall into it particularly well. Luckily, they had never spoke against the way she talked to whomever she pleased and didn't take orders from even the man who commanded everyone.

Lilith hid her uncomfortableness well though.

"That's it for now," Law said. They shouted out an _'Aye Captain!'_ and Law gave them a satisfied nod before walking out. Several people quickly disappeared, but Shachi, Jed, and Penguin stayed.

"Are you really already healed?" Shachi asked, with obvious concern in his eyes.

"Yah, my powers help me to heal very fast," Lilith said with a smile as she finished off her fruit.

"She was covered in bruises, don't you remember?" Penguin said while he pointed a finger at him.

"Hey! I didn't want to be rude!"

"It was rude to ask in the first place!"

Lilith cleared her throat and they two paused.

"I'm fine. Thank you for your concern. What is it you two do?" Lilith asked trying to get the attention off her.

"We're the sub's engineers!" They said at the same time and gave her a proud smile. Lilith let out a light laughed at how enthusiastic they were.

"So you like it on this sub? Even though we're underwater. On the bottom of the ocean?"

"We hand built this sub from the ground up! There's nowhere safer to be in the ocean!"

Lilith's eyes widened at the news.

"Wait, woah. You guys _built_ this thing?"

"Yeah, and we help in the up keep. We have a few other engineers, but we were the first," Penguin said. Lilith was thoroughly impressed.

"Captain said we need to get to our duties," Jed said timidly and the two popped up.

"You're right!"

"We have to go, but we hope to see you soon!"

Lilith gave them a wave as they took off.

"So, where are the cleaning supplies?" Lilith asked as she stood up from the bench. Jed motioned for her to follow him into the kitchen. Lilith let out a long sigh when they got back inside.

It looked worse now that she had to clean it.

* * *

Lilith rubbed her eyes with the backs of her hands to try and lift the fog that seemed to thicken as time went on. She didn't know why. She wasn't absorbing the fluorescent lights. She was sure not to. She knew how it made her feel.

But why was she feeling this way then?

Lilith huffed as she returned to scrubbing the dishes with a little for vigor this time. She had already cleaned off the counters (which made the place look sanitary) and she was almost done with the dishes.

She had just slipped past the 4 hour mark, when she started putting things back. She must have bent down and pulled up a little too fast because she could feel herself sway a bit.

"Miss Lilith! Woah!" Jed had rushed up to her and put his hands on her arms to steady her. He had been following his captain's orders to the T and checked up on her every 10 minutes or so. He pulled her over to a chair and sat her down.

"Are you okay? I think you should call it quits for now."

Lilith shook her head.

"No, no. I'm fine. Really."

Lilith gave Jed a small smile, but the redheaded boy shook his head.

"No. Captain said that if you're not feel well, to let you take a break. Let's get you back to the infirmary."

Lilith was a little surprised. Jed was, from what she could tell, not one for standing up to someone, yet here he was, telling her no.

" _Maybe a nap will help,"_ Lilith decided as she stood up. Jed followed behind her, diligently keeping an eye on her as they made their way back to the infirmary. He knocked once, before opening the door for her.

"Cap, I don't think Miss Lilith is feeling well."

Law turned around in his deck and his eyes went straight to her. Bags had started to form under her eyes and she looked slightly pale.

" _How had she even made it back here?"_

Law strode over to her and quickly scooped her up to get her onto a cot. He honestly didn't think she would be able to make it over to the

"Hey! I am fine! I can walk! You don't _umph_ -"

Lilith cut herself off when Law dropped her onto a cot. She sent him glare but he quickly started pulling things out.

"I want specifics as to how your feeling, Miss Lilith. It's very obvious you aren't feeling well, so please stop trying to cover it up."

Law held a stethoscope to her heart and then he moved to her lungs.

"I just feel sluggish, that's all."

"Do you think it's the lights?"

"I haven't been absorbing their energy!... But it feels like I have been. I don't know what's wrong."

Law hummed in response and pulled back from her. Nothing was abnormal with her insides as far as he could tell. Law prepared to take a blood sample from her.

"Well, for now I think you should nap. I'm going to take a blood sample and we'll see if I can figure it out."

Lilith gave him a nod and he started to prep the inside of her elbow. He gently pushed Lilith down onto the cot and, despite herself, she was out in an instant.

* * *

Law watched her immediately fall asleep and his brows furrowed in frustration and worry.

"Jed-ya, what exactly happened?"

Jed stood to attention at being addressed directly.

"Well, she was cleaning in the kitchen. She had gotten most of the stains up, and then she cleaned all the dirty dishes. She cleaned all of them, Captain," Jed explained in awe. "The kitchen looks great! But when I went in to check on her, I saw her swaying a bit and so I brought her here."

"She cleaned everything?" Law asked, more to himself, but Jed nodded his head anyways. In 4 hours she had cleaned everything? She probably over exerted herself. Maybe that and she was just still recovering? Her devil fruit was centered around energy and she said she had expelled it all, so maybe it was just trying to play catch up.

"Is she going to be okay?" Jed asked with worry laced into his words.

"She'll be fine, Jed-ya. It'll take a lot more than this to hurt her."

Jed nodded and slowly slipped out of the infirmary. Law took a seat in his desk chair and watched Lilith for a few more moments before getting started on her blood sample. He had decided to dedicate a full journal about her and her devil fruit.

He really wanted to see her devil fruit in action. All he had about her was how the air had darkened around her, how she looked when she absorbed energy, how he felt when she passed energy over to him, and her accelerated healing.

As the blood sample was testing, he wondered if he could get her to pass on some energy after they had resurfaced. He absentmindedly started to sketch as his mind wandered to her scars. They were all small and thick, but she had said she tried to heal them, so maybe they had been much thicker.

" _What had they done to her? She was so young. Fuck those people. Who do they think they are?"_

Before Law knew it, he had sketched a sleeping Lilith onto his page. He rolled his eyes at himself and closed the journal. He moved his focus to the blood and tried to push those thoughts out of his head.


	3. In Which Law Learns A Lot About Lilith

**A/N: I've posted two today, so make sure you read Chapter 2 as well! The review I have didn't show up and I don't know what I'm doing haha But thank you for the review! I really appreciate it! I hope you enjoy this one as well! :D**

* * *

Chapter 3

Alternate name: In which the author knows nothing about poker

* * *

Lilith knew something wasn't right. She was sluggish and it seemed like she saw everything through a haze. It had snuck up on her. She thought she would feel better after she took her nap, right before lunch, but now it was mid afternoon and she felt worse.

Something just wasn't right! She had never felt this bad before. It was like having the flu, but without the snot nose. She didn't think it would get worse when she woke up. Sleep was supposed to fix her. It always fixed her!

Lilith pushed the leftover fruit around on her plate, contemplating what was wrong but her appetite just wasn't there. It had taken everything in her to get to the galley in the first place. She slowly blinked at the plate of food as her mind drifted. She propped her head up with her hand as she slowly slipped into the limbo between asleep and awake.

As she crossed the threshold back into sleep, she felt her devil fruit kick in and start to absorb energy from the lights.

* * *

Law woke with a start. He was covered in goose skin and his breathing was labored. He roughly ran a hand through his hair as he pushed his chair back from his desk.

When had he even fallen asleep? At his desk? At least he made it to his room. He glanced at the clock by his bed and it read 5:13pm.

" _Shit"_

He quickly made his way over to the shower and let the water run over him.

" _Even when I'm worlds away, Doflamingo still haunts my nightmares,"_ Law thought to himself as he tried to wash away the memories of Corazon's death. They were becoming more and more prominent since he had experienced Lilith's power for himself. Even though the energy she gave him was gone, the 'static' as Lilith called it wasn't as prominent as before.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, he wondered if there was any static in Lilith's mind.

His thoughts had become easier to think through, but it was getting in the way. They would pop up at the worst times. Especially when his mind slipped from whatever task he was doing.

He thought about Corazon a lot. He would remember what it was like to travel on the run with him; how rough their relationship was in the beginning; how Corazon went out of his way for him; how Corazon explained what the initial _D_ meant; how Corazon sacrificed himself for Law.

His mind always came back to Corazon's death and Law had to violently shove the thoughts to the back of his mind.

He stepped out of the shower and dried himself off. He slipped on a hoodie and jeans and made his way to the galley to get something to drink. Maybe coffee, or some tea to clear his mind…

Law paused in the doorframe when he saw Lilith face first on the mess hall table. Her food was untouched beside her and he could hear her lightly snoring. Law took a few strides over to her and shook her shoulder slightly. She slowly lifted her head and attempted to wipe the sleep from her face. She stared up at Law with tired eyes to which he gave her a worried look.

"Miss Lilith, I thought you were in bed?"

"I woke up and didn't feel well so I tried to eat."

"What's wrong?" Law asked as he shifted into half doctor mode. A small part of him (for whatever reason) was genuinely worried about her.

Probably because he didn't know what was wrong with her.

"I'm sluggish and I don't know. It feels like something inside of me isn't connected properly."

Lilith gave Law a slow blink and Law's brows knitted together. He sat down on the bench, straddling it so he could face her. He put the back of his hand on her forehead, and checked her pulse. He pulled up her eyelids and an uneasy feeling washed over him when her eyes didn't dilate properly.

"Do you know why you feel like this?"

Lilith closed her eyes for a moment and put all her effort into thinking.

"I don't. I feel like I've spent hours under your damn fluorescent lights."

Law watched her with careful eyes as she stared at him through half lidded eyes.

"Have you been absorbing them?"

Lilith shook her head but then her eyes widened slightly.

"I… I mean, at least not when I'm awake. I might be doing it in my sleep. I don't know why. I've never done it before."

"Maybe you've always done it but my sub doesn't have natural lighting so it's hurting you."

Lilith gave him a small shrug and Law watched her with a worried glance. He didn't know what to do for this. Could he even do something? They couldn't surface. They were riding a current near the bottom of the ocean and they needed all the help they could get at this point. The next island was still 4 days away. He couldn't afford to get her into the sunlight for at least 12 hours.

Maybe if he got her out of the fluorescent lighting, and she slept, she would start to feel better.

Law didn't bother asking for permission. He gently slipped one arm under the bend of her legs and the other slipped around her back, as he lifted her from the bench. Law's worry only increased when she leaned into his chest. She didn't even try to protest or make a comment this time.

Law quickly made his way to his room and pushed open the door. He gently set her down on his bed, but surprisingly she wasn't asleep.

"Where are we?" Lilith asked in a hazy voice.

"In my room. I want you to sleep in here and see if the change in lighting helps you at all. I'll be right back."

Law quickly left the room and Lilith wiggled her body around. She pulled the covers up over her shoulders and when she laid back down, Law walked through the door. Despite the situation, Law couldn't help but chuckle at her. She was in a small cocoon of covers and rolled up into a small ball. Her hair was a bright contrast to the black sheets and blankets around her.

"You should get to sleep, but I'm going to record your vitals, okay?"

Lilith gave a small nod and she quickly slipped back into dream land.

* * *

Lilith took her time waking up. She was a bit groggy but it wasn't like before. There was still a slight fog in her head and a few of her movements felt like a third person was doing them, but she felt much better. She buried her face into Law's pillow and thought of going back to bed, but her stomach let out a growl.

After a bit of inner debating and another growl from her stomach, she sat up and looked around Law's room.

What she saw was surprising. There were hoodies and jeans discarded on the floor. Books piled up in front of bookshelves which were stuffed to the brim with more books. There was a messy desk on the wall next to her, with a chair pushed up against it, and she sat up on the large bed that seemed like overkill to her.

It really wasn't a room for a doctor, but Law was a pirate after all.

Lilith rubbed her eyes as Law walked through the door. He gave her a small smile and sat down in his chair.

"How are you feeling now, Miss Lilith?"

"I'm feeling better. Not 100%, but I do feel better. Nothing I can't push through."

Lilith gave him a smile as if to drive the point home. Law didn't comment though. Instead he shook down a thermometer and handed it to her as he pulled out a few other things. Lilith gave him a frown but put the thermometer under her tongue none-the-less. Law took her pulse and blood pressure, and then prepped the inside of her arm for another blood test. Law took the thermometer after finishing up with her blood sample, and wrote a bunch of stuff down on a clipboard.

It was then that her stomach let out another growl and Law laughed.

"How long have I been out for?"

"4 hours. It's about 10pm now. Why don't we get you some food?"

Lilith gave him a nod and pulled herself out of his bed. He lead them out and to the mess hall.

"I would surface so you can get light as soon as possible, but since you're stable, we need to ride out this current. We should resurface in 9 hours."

"No, no! Don't go out of your way for me. I'll be okay. We have 3 days left until the next island, yah? I'll be okay, I promise."

"Miss Lilith, I am a doctor. I will not have one of my patients suffering on my ship."

"But really, I don't want you guys-"

"Miss Lilith."

Law's tone left no room for argument and Lilith huffed in response. She knew how to pick battles, and she was in no mood for one right now. They walked in silence until they got to the galley, where Lilith heard loud talking and quite a bit of slamming. Law walked through the door without hesitation.

Lilith threw her hand up to her mouth to stifle the giggles that came from her. There were men rolling around on the ground fighting over something, 4 sitting around the table with cards in their hands, several others obviously taking bets on the game, and a few others knee deep in an arm wrestling match.

"You're playing poker, yah?" Lilith asked as she walked over to the table.

Shachi gave her a wide (and drunk) grin.

"Yeah! We're betting drinks or chores or dares or whatever comes to mind. Do you play?"

Lilith laughed and nodded her head as she sat down at the table to watch. The hand played out in the next few moments with Penguin and some strawberry blonde guy trying to call each other's bluff. Bepo ended up pulling ahead though.

"Why don't we deal you in then? We have plenty of alcohol-"

"Miss Lilith does not need to drink in her current state," Law stated as he placed a plate of food in front of her. She gave him a thankful smile as she started eating. Thankfully her appetite was back.

"She can still play with us, right Captain?" Shachi asked.

"I don't know if you want me playing with you guys," Lilith answered for Law.

"Why?"

"Well, my Kenbunshoku Haki gives me quite the advantage. I can see the emotions of others… well they're more like a color-coded language I have to figure out. But I do know what lying looks like, so you can kiss your secrets goodbye."

Lilith continued to eat as the men looked at her with slight bewilderment. Haki wasn't something any of the Heart Pirates were accustomed to…

Except Law.

He's read his fair share of books about the logistics of Haki. Most of which were about how to access Haki or who could control it or what the different kinds could do. He had focused his reading on Busoshoku Haki, which is the one he was comfortable using (and the one Corazon told him about), but he had started to read up on Kenbunshoku Haki.

"Seeing feelings isn't something that comes standard with Kenbunshoku Haki," Law challenged, rather than stated, but Lilith ignored the harshness of his comment.

"The people who taught me how to use Haki told me that since I developed Kenbunshoku Haki at such an early age I get perks other than the ability to predict where an attack is coming from. It's taken a long time, but I've gotten pretty good at reading people's emotions. But don't feel too bad. My _special ability_ comes from my terrible past."

Law watched Lilith as she dug into her food again after her little spiel. He couldn't tell if she was lying. But maybe because of her Haki, she could conceal it? She was so expressive though. Was it all a facade? Questioning her credibility was worthless at this point, Law decided, so he pressed further.

"What do you mean?"

"I was held in captivity for 6 years of my life. I didn't even have to step out of line for them to punish me. My Kenbunshoku Haki developed so I could avoid my captors as much as possible. I could only sense auras back then, but that was, what? 13 years ago? I've had a lot of time to perfect it."

"Can you use the other Haki's?"

"I can use Busoshoku Haki, but definitely not like my Kenbunshoku Haki. It's why I fight with knives and not a sword or something. I can't cover something larger than a knife confidently."

Law nodded, taking her answers for the time being. He would have to ask her specific questions later.

"So you can read people's emotions?"

Lilith nodded at Shachi's question as she continued stuffing her face.

"But lying isn't an emotion," Law stated (rather firmly). Lilith burrowed her eyebrows in confusion and swallowed her mouthful of food.

"Have you not worked with your Kenbunshoku Haki?" Lilith asked with her head cocked. Law narrowed his eyes at her question.

"You might have a have a hard time with it, if you keep up with that frame of thought, Doctor Trafalgar," Lilith said with a small smirk.

"But to answer your previous question: Lying isn't directly an emotion, I guess, but deception brings up guilt, sadness, anxiety, and nervousness. It comes across as a purple-ish blue haze in front of people's eyes. Obviously, I can't tell if someone's lying if they don't _know_ they're lying, but that rarely happens. People lie with a purpose, yah?"

Despite himself, Law was starting to believe her. It made sense. She didn't waiver in her answers and it wasn't like she was trying to pass off something unbelievable. He should go back over his books though.

Just to be sure.

"I'm going to run your blood, Miss Lilith. Feel free to use my room to sleep in when you're done," Law said as he left the mess hall.

* * *

Law was not prepared for what he saw when he entered the mess hall an hour later. He didn't think anything would have prepared him, honestly. His crew was spread out all over the room, presumably drunk, and half naked. The original 4 players were still sitting at the table, but they too were mostly naked.

Lilith was the only one fully clothed.

"Come on Shachi! What's it going to be, huh?" Lilith said with a shit eating grin. The rest of the table was laughing at the poor man. He was sitting in only his boxers and sunglasses now.

"Please don't take off the boxers, Shachi-ya," Law said, making his presence known. His crew greeted him with a loud (and drunk) _'Hello Captain!"._ Lilith let out a bunch of giggles at the ridiculousness of the situation.

"I thought I told you to not drink, Miss Lilith."

"I haven't! I swear it! They just wanted me to play with them."

"And why are they all naked?"

Lilith burst into a fit of giggles, and tried her best to get an answer out, but Lord was it too much for her. She hadn't had this much fun in a long, long time. She had been in a constant state of laughing throughout the entire game.

"Since we couldn't bet with drinks, or chores, or money, she offered up strip poker, and so now here we are," Bepo answered. He was not wearing anything, but he was a polar bear so it didn't matter too much. Law shook his head, but couldn't hide the smirk on his face.

"She told you she could see when you were lying and yet you still wanted to play with her?"

"We thought we could get her to take off _some_ clothing," Sammy (the man with strawberry blonde hair) said.

"And how's that workin' for you, sweetie?"

Lilith gave the groaning men a shit eating smirk and a wink. Law let out a laugh as he sat down across from Lilith at the table.

"Deal me in, then."

His crew let out cheers at the news.

"Not so fast!" Lilith shouted. "Shachi still has to take off something!"

Shachi gave Lilith a glare, and all but ripped his sunglasses off.

"Oh thank God."

"I thought he'd take off his boxers."

Lilith let out another string of giggles.

"Let's get going then!"

* * *

Law was fucking pissed.

The game went on with Lilith leading the way and Law managed to avoid her wrath for a few rounds. But Lilith was _competitive_. She was merciless when it came to winning each round. She was a great poker player and knew how to play the hand. Her Haki was only added help for a woman who clearly didn't need it.

But Law was still pissed.

He was sitting in just his jeans, having discarded his hoodie, tank top, _and_ hat. He knew she was going specifically after him now. With every article Law took off, her eyes hungrily washed over him with a smug look of satisfaction.

Law wanted to rip that off her face.

No, he _needed_ to _._

Law could feel her reading him like an open fucking book and that only got under his skin even more. If he had a good hand, she would be able to see it and fold. If he had a bad hand and tried passing it off as a good, she would be able to see that too and call him out on it. It took him three tries before he decided he was screwed.

Lilith gave him a smirk, seeing red tinge the aura around his head. Law shot her a glare that would kill a normal person. As the newest hand was being dealt out, a brilliant thought hit Law out of nowhere.

He kept his glare focused on the cards and thought of a lie. A blatant one. Something easy but loud… or potent maybe? He didn't know the right word. It had to be enough to throw her off.

When Lilith laid down her cards, Law couldn't help the smirk that crept to his face. He put his cards down (a little more enthusiastic than he intended) but the way Lilith's face dropped in innocent confusion was beyond a doubt the best thing in the world.

And Law wanted to make it happen again.

Cheers erupted around the table at Law's flush of spades that easily out weighed Lilith's 4 of a kind.

"But how! You were obviously lying!"

"I'll never reveal my secrets, Miss Lilith."

Lilith grumbled to herself as she pulled her tucked white shirt out of her shorts. She pulled it over her head and folded it neatly on the table. The entire table was cheering at the spectacular turn of events.

And much to Law's satisfaction, Lilith's blush went all the way down to the top of her chest.

"I didn't know you had so many tattoos," Sammy said. She gave him a smirk, despite her blush.

"Yah. Every time I come into extra cash, I end up putting another one on me. They're quite addicting, yah?" Lilith said as she sent a wink Law's direction.

He swore his mind stopped working for a few moments and Lilith's giggle flooded his mind.

Law couldn't fully process what he was seeing. Lilith was supposed to be cute and dainty. She got flustered easily and wasn't able to stay awake for very long. She giggled at everything and reminded Law of a kid. She wasn't wide hips, a thin waist, and pouty lips. Not to mention those tattoos.

 _God those tattoos._

Law was having a hard time focusing on anything other than what she looked like in nothing but her tattoos.

" _Fuck, can she see that too?"_ Law wondered as he quickly averted his eyes back to the cards being dealt to him. He tried to convince himself that he had seen her without her shirt plenty of times. Hell, she had even stood in front of him with the same amount of clothes on as he blatantly stared at her tattoos. He even ran his hand over her tattoos-

Okay. That was the wrong path to go down right now. Law mentally sighed as another hand started up.

* * *

"I think you should get back to sleep, Miss Lilith."

His crew let out a collective groan at the Captain's orders but Lilith nodded her head and covered a yawn with her hand. She stood and slipped on her shirt (she hadn't lost anything else much to Law's annoyance). She started walking back and didn't even realize Law was following her until they got close to the infirmary.

"Why are you following me? I can sleep by myself you know."

"I need to draw your blood. I'm trying to create a timeline and see if I can figure out a way to combat this."

Lilith gave him a slight nod. She jumped onto the cot and sat patiently as Law took more blood. When she laid back to go to sleep, Law spoke up.

"You're sleeping in my room, Miss Lilith."

"What? No. I can't kick you out of your room!"

"It's obvious that you're feeling better after sleeping in there. I will not undo the progress we've made," Law said without giving her a glance. It was dismissive, in hopes that she would just do it.

"We can just turn off the lights in here then."

"I need the lights on to work on your blood."

"Then I'll wait. It can't-"

"It isn't up for debate, Miss Lilith."

Lilith gave him a glare and she crossed her arms. His face was void of any emotion and he didn't even bother looking at her. Her rigidness slacked slightly but she was still frowning at him.

"I really don't like inconveniencing you like this. I'm beginning to become more work than I'm worth. And if you still insist on surfacing tomorrow, then I should be fine here for the night."

Law didn't say anything as he watched her. Lilith wasn't even looking at him at the end of her spiel. Her eyes were roaming around the infirmary and for the first time since Lilith got here, Lilith was shutting herself out from Law.

He didn't know what to do honestly. She was so transparent normally. Even when she had talked about her past, she hadn't been holding anything back. But now she was holding something back. And doing a bad job at it honestly.

Law had to resist the urge to laugh at the weirdness of the situation.

"Miss Lilith, you are not a burden here. My crew has taken to you, and I enjoy having you around. Why do you think you're a burden?"

Lilith's eyes found Law's once again, and Law's chest physically pained at how empty they seemed.

"I would prefer if we don't dive into that area of my life."

"I believe it was you that told me it isn't good to bottle things up."

"Some things you are just better off not knowing."

Lilith pulled her eyes from Law as she let out a long yawn.

"If you change your mind, I'll be all ears."

"The same goes for you, Doctor Trafalgar," Lilith said with a small smile. Law returned it as he stood and quickly scooped her up again. Lilith let out a loud squeal.

"What the shit! I thought we were having some kind of moment!"

Lilith could feel Law's chuckle reverberating through his chest and she fought down the blush. Law glanced down at Lilith and his chuckle deepened.

"We were and now it's over. You need to get some sleep. We'll surface in the morning and you'll be back to feeling normal."

A small smile graced her lips at the thought of getting rid of the fog. Gods was she looking forward to that. Before she could think anymore, Law had arrived at his room and pushed through the door. He gently laid her down and Lilith couldn't help but curl back into the bed. It was hands down the best bed she had ever been in.

Her face turned bright red at the implication.

"Goodnight, Miss Lilith."

"Goodnight, Doctor Law."

Lilith was out in minutes.


	4. In Which There Is A Warship

**A/N: Hello! Here's my 4** **th** **chapter! We're gonna dive into Lilith's present so buckle up! :D**

Chapter 4

Alternate Name: In Which Lilith Kicks Ass

It was just after breakfast that next day, (on Lilith's 3rd day; 2 days out from the next island) when Bepo's voice sounded through the weird funnels used to communicate on the sub.

" _Captain! There's a ship! It looks just like the ones Lilith-chan destroyed!"_

Lilith quickly followed after Law to the navigation room and watched as he peered through the periscope. His mouth pulled into a thin line as he pulled away and gestured for Lilith to take a look.

"Shit, that's a big ship," Lilith said as she stared at the giant black warship not but a few meters away from the sub. As she pulled back, she crossed her arms and she glared at the periscope.

"Can you destroy it?" Shachi asked from the doorframe. The rest of the crew had followed after the two.

"Of course," Lilith said with a slight scoff. "As soon as I get out in that sun, I'll be able to. I would really like to talk to the captain of that ship and see what he knows. I'm due for a few answers."

Lilith glanced at Law, silently asking for permission. Law gave her a nod.

"I'd like to see what your powers can do."

Lilith's face lit up, literally lit up, at the good knews.

"Oh good! I've been getting restless here, yah know?"

She flashed a smile that was much too innocent for what was about to come, Law decided. But he also decided that whatever _was_ going to come was going to be extremely interesting. Everything about this girl was interesting if he was honest with himself. He was dying to see her devil fruit in action.

"Let's get you a weapon and then we can surface."

Law led her out to a room towards the very back of the sub, near the crew's sleeping quarters. Lilith didn't even bother trying to subdue the squeal that left her mouth when she saw the surplus of weapons. There was everything from katanas to knives to a goddamn syth.

Lilith quickly went over to the knives and sorted through them until she picked out one with a blade the length of her palm. It wasn't anything flashy, but the blade was a bit heavier than the others. Lilith gave it a few flips in the air and stood with a satisfied nod.

"Let's get to it, what do ya say Doctor Law?"

Law said nothing but led them to his room, which was a few hallways over and opened the door. Lilith peaked in and watched Law look around his room.

She watched Law pull on a large sword (it was about as long as she was) and she moved aside as he walked out. They quickly made their way to the latch that opened up to the outside. The crew was gathered around in anxiously. Red light flashed for a few moments, indicating they were rising, and when they stopped, Law threw open the hatch. Lilith was out before his eyes could even adjust to the sunlight.

Lilith stood and looked up at the large ship they had pulled up next to. It was huge; even bigger than the periscope led on. It looked like a Marine battleship but made out of the same special blackened wood from the previous ships.

From their position though (right next to the hull of the large ship), they were completely undetected. She really liked that about the sub. It was stealthy and undetectable and perfect for what she needed. Maybe she could run a sub by herself?

Lilith let out a laugh at herself as she drew in energy from the sun's rays. The air around her darkened just as Law stepped up on the deck with her.

"Why does your devil fruit darken the air around you like that?"

"I absorb light faster than it can be replaced by the sun. It's just a side effect; purely aesthetic," Lilith said with her eyes still closed.

She could feel the natural energy seep into her body as the fake energy was being pushed from her body. A toothy grin stretched from ear to ear as she felt whole again. The feeling wasn't something to go screaming home to mother about. It wasn't euphoric or Earth shattering. It was more like a warm breeze during the summer. Or the stillness that follows a first snow. Something about it completed her, and opened her up even more. This light energy always made her whole, no matter what.

And it easily washed away the fog that had built up in her mind.

"So what do you normally do?"

Lilith slowly opened her eyes as her grin morphed into a smirk.

She gave her quick explanation as she put the knife through a belt loop and then slipped her shirt over her head.

"I can tell that there's 25 people on the ship plus a captain. He's in the upper room. Might even be sleeping. It shouldn't take too long for me to get rid of them all. I'm going to save the captain for last though."

The crew that was on the deck was blubbering at the sight of Lilith shirtless again. She had only her short shorts and the bandages around her chest and something about that was enticing. Or maybe it was that they hadn't seen a woman for a while.

Most likely the latter. Lilith wasn't as filled out as most females due to her lacking of food as of recently. It had never really concerned her in all honestly.

"Do you mind hanging onto this? I don't want to get it dirty," Lilith said as she handed it over to Law. He let out a deep chuckle as he took it.

"We'll throw up our grappling hooks and get on the ship that way-"

"No need. I can get up without them."

Law said nothing as Lilith pulled the knife from her shorts as light started to gather around her bare feet. She bent her knees slightly and released the energy all at once. It propelled her up and onto the deck of the ship in a flash of light. Law quickly jumped up after her as the rest of his crew scrambled to throw up the grappling hooks.

Law was met with Lilith facing away from him a few feet in front of him with her hands on her hips. The air around Lilith was dark again and there were 14 people on the large deck. They all stopped to look up at the girl. As their mind caught up to them, their faces morphed into those of pure terror.

"O-oh God! It is you!"

"Captain was right!"

"You did destroy those ships!"

"Oh God!"

"We're doomed!"

Lilith let out a light chuckle as she lazily twirled the knife between her fingers.

"Oh dear, your captain warned you about me?"

Lilith let out another laugh and she turned her head to smirk at Law. He stood back with one hand in his pocket and the other on the hilt of his sword. When he returned her smirk, Lilith turned back to the slavers.

"Let me know if his warning helps you out any, yah?"

Lilith seemed to disappear from the deck, and if not for Law's (what he realizes now is frail) ability with Kenbunshoku Haki, he would've only seen the crew drop like flies after a large slash over their neck.

But he could make out the way she moved across the deck. She moved like the light itself. She seemed to dance and twirl from victim to victim and Law swore he could hear her laughing as she did it. Lilith moved with such certainty and grace that he couldn't move his eyes from her.

Not that he really wanted to.

He vaguely registered his crew clambering up behind him, but they too were frozen. To them they couldn't see Lilith anymore, just a slew of collapsing bodies and the stench of copper quickly filling the air.

The spray of blood and fear that her Kenbunshoku Haki was picking up on multiplied Lilith's adrenaline and drove her forward. This was the only time she allowed herself to let loose. She fought out those 6 years she was stuck on a ship, thrown from cell to cell, and passed from pervert to pervert.

She never knew who had kidnapped her, or where she came from. There were no records of her and she had been so young that most of the details of her background were overshadowed by what happened to her. Maybe her head was mentally burying it for her, or maybe those memories were completely gone.

Lilith had no need for them anyways. This was all she needed. As long as she was destroying slavers, and they feared her, she felt like she was somehow saving young Lilith. She was saving herself even though it was a slow and endless task.

At least that's what she told herself.

Lilith ended her dance in the middle of the deck and gave a large grin to the Heart Pirates.

Her tanned skin was glowing now, making her black tattoos look like some kind of divine artwork adorning her. Her blue eyes seemed to be pulled from the sky itself and her hair was as soft as the clouds above. She looked like someone from biblical times, if Law was honest with himself.

But Law's focus was on the blood that she was covered in. She wore it like a trophy and stood tall and proud and so devilishly sexy Law felt heat pooling in the pits of his stomach. He really was sadistic. He had never seen a woman move like that and enjoy killing so thoroughly.

But it was strange, because Lilith's demeanor didn't seem to really change. She was the same person who had been laughing and sharing stories with his crew just the night before. She was still expressive and completely transparent. She still had this air of defiant fearlessness about her.

Something in Law's head couldn't fully grasp that. No one in his life was ever that open. No one was ever the same person in all aspects of their life. Even with all the evidence, Law still couldn't help but deny himself to accept that, so instead, he decided to pry a bit.

"You enjoy that?" Law asked, with a small smirk on his face.

"What? Killing slavers? Yah," Lilith answered Law as she held his gaze confidently. He let out a low chuckle that only fueled her high.

"So does it do it for you like the sun does?" Law found himself saying before he could fully comprehend the words. A faint blush dusted her cheeks but Lilith's smirk only widened at his words. She didn't bother answering, but she did give him a wink as her tongue danced over her teeth.

Law sucked in a small breath.

"There are 13 more inside the ship so I'm gonna go take care of them. I'll bring the captain up so I can show you how I make birds sing," Lilith said with a devilish smirk as she quickly disappeared into the ship.

Law was frozen in place for a few moments before Penguin's voice broke through his daze.

"Lilith-chan is… Quite…. Something."

"She sure is, Penguin."

Lilith flittered through the ship's hallway; her bare feet barely made any sounds at all so stealth was very much on her side. She let her knife do most of the work, not worried as much about aesthetics this time around. Her one track mind had quickly shifted to the captain of the ship and she was heading there as quickly as she could.

Answers were what she craved now and the spray of blood from the crew was only driving her further.

She came across the captain's quarters easily, and threw open the door. A large man, with short chestnut hair and hazel eyes jumped in surprize when Lilith darted from the door frame and went after his head. He dodged her knife easily, but the second her hand laid on his bare arm, he knew it was merely a distraction.

Lilith rested her hand on the man's exposed arm and quickly drew in his energy. He slumped forward with his eyes half lidded in pure exhaustion. He wasn't quite knocked out, but he was a far cry from fighting back at this point.

She wasted no time in grabbing the back of his shirt and pulling him back out to the deck (with the help of her powers to give her the strength to haul someone twice her size). She threw him to the floor and stood in front of him, not even bothering to acknowledge the Heart Pirates this time around.

She stared at him with clear malice written on her face and the man slowly met her gaze.

"W-what do you want?"

"I need answers."

"I-I can't tell you! They swore they'd kill me if I talked to you!"

Lilith let out a dark chuckle as she shook her head.

"Do you really think they're the ones that are going to kill you?"

The man turned white with fear and he tried to scramble back as his arms shook.

"No, no. I want to make a deal with you, so there's no real need to be scared, yah?"

The man said nothing as he continued to shake a bit. Her small smile quickly turned to a frown as she took a few strides to stand in front of the man. She bent at the waist to put her face directly in his and narrowed her eyes.

"Let me lay this out for you. One way or another, you will die today. I can either be merciful, and make it quick, or I can draw it out for however long I need to. But, luckily for you, I need answers. So, this is what's going to happen. You're going to collect yourself and tell me everything I need to know about your employer and these new ships. And you're going to tell me the truth, yah?"

The man said nothing, but thankfully he had calmed down slightly. Lilith continued on after a few moments.

"If you do, I'll make it quick for you. No need to worry about backlash from your employers. You'll get a quick and simple death for your cooperation. But if you lie, or refuse to tell me, well… You don't want to know what I'll do, yah?"

The man nodded his head vigorously and the soft smile returned to Lilith's face as she took a few steps back. She quickly sat down on the deck with her legs straight out in front of her.

"Alright, let's start out with names. I'm Lilith."

It took a few moments but she could tell with her Haki that the man was falling into the false sense of safety she was trying to create.

"M-my name's Donathan, b-but they called me Don."

"Mmmm, alright Don. I take it you were the captain of this ship? And it's a slaving ship right? Meant for transportation?"

Don said nothing but gave her a worried look.

"What is it Don? You need to tell me if you want me to uphold my end of our deal."

"I-I'm not the captain. The captain left on another ship because he heard you were in the area," Don spat out before he could stop himself.

"Oh, wow. What a coward. You're a better man than him because you stayed behind, I hope you know."

Don said nothing but it was obvious he was thrown off with the weird compliment. Lilith paid him no mind as she pressed on.

"Okay. So where did you get this ship? Why is it black? Tell me all you know about it."

Don looked around the deck, obviously still nervous about spilling extremely important information like this. When his eyes landed on the Heart Pirates, he went back to shaking.

"T-that's Trafalgar Law! And t-the Heart P-Pirates!"

"Yes, but they hardly matter right now, yah? I'm the one who dictates what to do with your life."

Lilith still had a soft smile on her face when Don's head snapped back to her.

"Now, tell me about the ship."

And so Don went on to talk about how they picked up the ship from a harbour over a month ago. He didn't know much about it other than it's special wood from somewhere in the New World and there were about 30 ships created total. Some underground shipwrights that worked off an island near Fisherman's Island were found by the big boss that commanded all these ships.

"Who's that?" Lilith asked, inquiring about Don's boss. He had opened up slightly, hopefully coming to terms with this.

"I don't know. I never knew him, but Captain Kervin knew him. I think that's why he left. They didn't want you to talk to him about Boss."

Lilith said nothing as she mulled this over in her head. There wasn't much she could do about Don not having specifics. She took in a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"Well, then. Do you know what or where you were heading? The ship's empty."

"We were going to pick up slaves. There's a hub that sells them so we can take them to auction houses. We have an eternal pose in the navigation room."

Lilith's eyes went as wide as saucers.

"Really!? Do you think your boss is there? How many slaves are there? Do you know how far it is from here?"

Don shook his head.

"I don't know much of the island itself, but I do know we were 3 weeks out from it. We're never on the island for more than a few hours. Our boss has an agreement with them and Captain Kervin is in charge of sorting through the slaves to insure quality. I was in charge of paying and haggling for prices. We were kept from the merchandise because some people from our crew were too tempted."

Lilith's body tensed at his words. Don trailed off, realizing what he had said.

"I only have one more question for you Don," Lilith said as she have him a hard gaze. "Do you enjoy doing this? Selling people as if they're items and not persons with thought and reason."

"N-no! Of course I don't agree with it!" Don said, and to Lilith's surprise, he was telling the truth. She couldn't see the pale purple haze of deception around him.

"Then why are you doing this?"

"I don't have a choice! They forced me to join and I had to follow orders or they would kill-"

"Excuses!" Lilith said with her face red from anger. Liar or not, he still had a choice. Everyone has a choice.

"You can still say _no_! At least in death you would know you did the right thing! If everyone who was against this chose death instead of contributing then I would be out of a job! Shit, I might even still be with my family and leading a normal life. I could even be married by now! But instead, I was 6 and taken from my island to be handed around like some damn fruit for sale!"

The air seemed to still at Lilith's fury. Don could feel her anger radiating off her like the heat from sun and he started to shake again. Lilith took a few calming breaths as she stood up. She ran a hand through her hair and then looked down at Don.

"Do you need time to make peace with your God?"

"N-n-no."

Lilith gave him a small nod then and slashed her knife over his neck with a bit more force than necessary. The air stayed stale as Don's head fell back and gravity pulled it completely off. It rolled on the deck a bit before Lilith got her senses back.

"I'm going to do a walk through of the ship and see if I can find anything else, but I'm sure they've cleaned it out. You guys wanna loot it, yah?"

Lilith worded it like a question but by the time she finished she was already below deck.

"Alright, men. You heard the lady. Take anything you can!"

Law's order earned him a cheer as the Heart Pirates followed in after Lilith. Law slowly followed after them and wondered around the hull of the ship. It was set up like any normal ship, but it was all black. There was little light that got through below and Law was heavily relying on his Kenbunshoku Haki so he didn't get turned around.

The 3 levels directly below the deck were nothing but storage and so he let his crew go to town. He did note that there was a severe lacking of defense on the ship. There were a few cannons set up but other than that, Law didn't see much of anything else.

" _With a crew of 25, it isn't surprising. I guess they were willing to take a few hits and run instead of standing and fighting."_

If what Law thought was true, and he was rarely wrong, then this was strictly a cargo ship. Its purpose was to get from point A to point B as quickly and easily as possible. If they stopped to fight, they risked damaging the cargo or possibly losing it. And the lack of crew was a testament to that. Normal cargo didn't need constant maintenance, so they only kept a crew big enough to run the ship.

But these were people they were hauling around, not fruit and grain.

The thought set Law's blood on fire and he was easily seeing just why Lilith did this. He silently wondered if she knew who her slavers were back in the day. He wondered if she had sought out justice or if she was running around blind hoping she got lucky one day.

When Law got to the bottom deck of the ship, his nose was insulted with mold, blood, and feces. He had to fight himself from choking on the thick air as his eyes scanned the empty room in confusion. When he focused his eyes, he could sense dead bodies littering the room. He saw Lilith standing in the middle of the room with her hands clenched at her sides.

"Miss Lilith. Are you alright?"

Lilith took a few moments to answer but didn't unclench her hands.

"I'll be fine, Doctor Trafalgar. It just… hurts being here.."

After a few moments, Law decided to push.

"Were you held in a room like this?"

"Yah."

Law said nothing as Lilith's hands clenched tighter. He decided to steer the conversation away from her.

"Why is this room so empty? I thought there would be cells?"

"No. They use cages, like for animals. That way they don't have to open anything and risk losing cargo. All they have to do is pick up the cages and move them where they want them. They reserve that for the healthier and bigger people. The weaker ones just get cuffed and thrown down here. Normally they don't make it out anyways."

Law nodded once, and decided it would be best to get out of here.

"Have you been to the navigation room yet?"

Lilith shook her head but didn't move. Law slowly walked to her and placed his hand on her shoulder. She flinched but relaxed into the touch after a few moments. Law quickly lead her out of the room. They walked up the 3 storage decks and Law released his hold.

"Come back here whenever you get finished, Miss Lilith."

She gave the Captain a nod and quickly disappeared back on the top deck.


	5. In Which There Is A Deal

**A/N: Hahahaha shit guys. I tried to break this chapter up into two parts but I couldn't find a good, natural place to do it. But now we'll get more Law and Lilith time and more background and more bonding and quite frankly I love this chapter.**

 **But on a serious note, I've had the past 5 chapters done and ready to post so now I'm working on fixing up the next two/three chapters that all go together so it might be a while before I get it done. I'm really picky, so who knows how long it'll take.**

 **But please leave your comments and feedback! I love that stuff. :D and I really hope this chapter flows like I want it to. Thanks!**

* * *

Chapter 5

Alternate Name: In which the author wrote 7,110 words because she can't stop and won't stop

* * *

Lilith stood on the upper deck as she scanned the horizon for other ships before finding her way back to the captain's quarters. She quickly worked through the papers, but with every paper she glanced over, she grew more and more frustrated. It was apparent they had gotten rid of anything and everything that would help her.

" _Once again, I can't_ _actually_ _help anyone."_

It started by throwing the papers that held no information at the ground. Then she started with heavier things like pens and books and then a lamp. Pretty soon she had thrown a chair at the wall in peak frustration.

She collapsed to her knees as the weight of her 'failure' settled on her shoulders. Tears starting falling from her eyes, but she was silent. She never seemed to be able to get there in time to save anyone. The ships were either empty or full of people who were beyond her help.

 _Where were you supposed to put people with such small chances of making it in the real world? What were you supposed to do when they begged you to kill them? What were you supposed to do when they looked to you for strength and you barely had enough to keep yourself moving forward?_

" _How could I save people when I know they couldn't be saved?"_

Lilith sniffled as she stared at the large hole she created in the wall. Her face was stained with dry tears now and her breathing was labored from the downhill emotional roller coaster she was on.

"Miss Lilith?"

Lilith snapped her head around to see Law and Bepo standing in the doorframe. She scrambled to her feet and wiped at her face.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to cause you guys alarm."

Lilith turned back to the room and scanned it quickly to try to distract herself. She let out a shaky breath as she tried to calm down.

" _All those people are lost now. I couldn't even get them out of harm's way. I know what's going to happen to them. I know what-"_

"Would you like Bepo to gather the Log Pose so you can get out on the deck?"

"No," Lilith answered immediately, although her voice was small.

"Bepo, join the rest of the crew."

Bepo quickly disappeared and Law slowly walked over to Lilith. He put a hand on her shoulder again to try and calm her down but this time she jerked away and took a few steps away from him.

"Please don't touch me, Doctor Law," Lilith stated in a small voice.

"Are these the same people who kidnapped you?"

A stiff silence stretched over the two people. Lilith shook her head.

"Do you know who kidnapped you?"

Lilith squeezed her eyes shut in hopes of keeping some grip on reality. The tears threatened to escape and she didn't want Law to see her beak down like this. She was supposed to be strong and a ship destroyer. Not a crying girl. Sadly, a very loud part of her demanded she tell Law more. Something in her wanted to share her story with Law.

And Lilith was never one to deny herself something.

Lilith took a few breaths to calm herself and Law waited patiently. He honestly didn't expect to get much, but he did want answers. He also wanted her to calm down. He didn't want Lilith to do anything rash.

Like expel the rest of her energy to blow up the ship with his men on it.

"I don't know who kidnapped me, but I was sold to a family of Celestial Dragons. I was shipped from place to place that they owned. I was passed around like some plaything. Being here makes me uncharacteristically angry and frightened all at the same time. The ships remind me of the fear I had of not knowing where I was going next."

Silence stretched over the two again for a few beats, but now Lilith was on a roll and her words came before she could process them.

"I know I can't but I want to go. I want to go and save the people they sold off. I know what they're going to do to the slaves. I know the scars they'll get. I know the deaths they'll see. I know how dehumanizing it is. I know how it'll kill them slowly, from the inside out. But even if I could get to them, I can't save them. I never get to truly save them. Nothing I do will truly save them. Even though I take the sword from the wound, it'll still bleed for them. I'm not doing anything but blowing up ships and freeing people who will never be free again."

Law kept his gaze steadily on Lilith. This was heavy, heavy stuff and he didn't exactly know how to react to it. She was right, and there wasn't anything Law could do or say to make the situation better. Thankfully, Lilith wasn't looking for any condolences. She really just needed an ear or two.

"I just wish I could help them more than I am. I know I'm helping, but I'm not fully fixing the problem either. And then I get to thinking about what the slaves are going to go through and I…"

Lilith closed her eyes as silent tears fell down her face. She was past the point of hysteria, and now the feeling of nothing but helplessness washed over her. She would take hysteria over helplessness any day.

"What did you go through?"

"Things that would make even you, the Doctor of Darkness, nauseous."

"Like what?" Law pressed. Lilith had improved drastically after voicing a few of her concerns. He could see relaxed and her breathing had evened out. He was hoping he could get her completely under control if he pressed further.

"Cutting, beating, drowning, burning… Really any form of torture they could think of. The Celestial Dragons liked power, and beating me past the point of recognition really did it for them."

"Have they tried finding you?"

"No. They most likely think I'm dead. During one of the transfers, the ship I was on got caught in a storm and I somehow landed on an island."

"Then why bother taking out slavers if they aren't looking for you?"

There were a few moments of silence as Lilith thought over Law's question. She didn't need to take the time. She knew why. But putting into words for someone else? That was something she hadn't done in years. No one had pressed into her past in ages. People were too scared to.

" _He is the Doctor of Darkness."_

Lilith took a deep breath and looked Law in the eyes before she answered.

"Because whether or not they're looking for me, whether or not I can truly save them, I refuse to sit back and let this continue. I refuse to let what happened to me continue on. If it means I have to aimlessly roam around and destroy whatever comes my way, then I will."

Lilith held Law's gaze with the same silent determination he had seen before and he gave her a smirk.

"I admire that about you, Miss Lilith," Law said and he watched Lilith fidget a little at the compliment. She decided to ignore it completely.

"Can I have my shirt back?"

Law handed it over to her with a small smirk on his face. She pulled it over her head and she ran a hand through her hair.

"Are you going to find that log pose, Miss Lilith?"

"Could you not call me that? I'm not that old."

Law raised his eyebrows at her weird statement.

"How old are you?"

"Now that's just rude," Lilith scoffed at him as she walked out of the captain's room without another word to him. He narrowed his eyes at her retreating form but didn't comment on the fact that she had blatantly ignored two questions he had asked her.

Law made his way back to the deck. He scanned the deck, but was surprised Lilith wasn't there. Instead of thinking about it, he went back to where he had left his crew before he heard the crash.

"CAPTAIN!"

Law jogged over to where Penguin had shouted his name. He made his way deeper into the storage room until he came across his crew crowding around a door frame. They were buzzing with excitement and Law found himself getting drawn in.

"Why is everyone so excited?"

Law's question broke his men into a rampage of answers and Law couldn't make out right from wrong. Law pushed past his men, and for the first time in a long while, Law was speechless.

* * *

Lilith walked out onto the deck once more with her shirt tucked into her shorts and a log pose attached to her wrist. She stood tall on the deck as she relaxed and took in the sun. It was a peaceful day, despite what had happened to the ship. Lilith opened her eyes and scrunched her face.

" _Wait… Where is everyone? Why aren't they out yet?"_

Lilith made her way back under the deck to the storage rooms and she had to go deeper (much deeper than she normally would have) just to find a glimpse of anyone.

"Hey! Where is everyone?" Lilith asked a random group of Heart Pirates in grey boiler suits.

"Captain's trying to figure out what to do with all the gold we found! We don't know where to put it!"

Before Lilith could ask any more questions, the men had raced back up to the deck. Lilith pushed deeper into the hull of the ship until she heard loud conversations being held.

"This is more money than I've ever seen in my life!"

"What are we going to do with it?"

"Do we even have room for it?"

"Think of all the girls we can buy!"

"Think of all the parts we can buy!"

Lilith took a few steps around the corner and a few of the pirates noticed her.

"Miss Lilith!"

"You're an angel!"

"An angel on earth!"

"I don't know what we'd do without you!"

If it was at all possible, Lilith's face scrunched up even more. She had no idea where this was coming from. Just how much had they found? There was never much gold on the ships.

" _Maybe the Heart Pirates weren't as well off as I thought."_

She immediately retracted her thought when she came into view of a large storage room full of beli. She let out an audible gasp as she stepped in the room. The piles were taller than she was and it was hard to find a place to stand in the room without stepping on the coins.

"Should I assume not all the ships you destroy have money on them like this?" Law asked as he judged her reaction. Lilith shook her head as she still tried to wrap her mind around all the money.

"I've never seen this much money on a _slaving_ ship before."

Lilith was starting to wonder if it was just people they were supposed to be moving on this ship. Maybe guns? Bombs? Devil fruits? Rare technology? Drugs? For a few moments Lilith started to worry about what she had gotten involved in before Law's voice cut through her thoughts.

"Then I guess it's my lucky day. You did say we could keep whatever we found."

Lilith gave him a nod as she fidgeted with the log pose. It didn't take long for the men she had run into earlier to come back with burlap sacks. It looked like they were old potato sacks.

"We found these Captain!"

"Good. Get it loaded up and I'll find some place to put it all. Why don't you join me, Lilith?"

Lilith gave him a nod and followed him out of the ship and into the sub. Law made his way to the bottom deck of his sub and looked around it.

It was a large room that was filled with random stuff; discarded beds, broken furniture, broken parts, and other indistinguishable items.

"Aww man. This will take forever to clear out," Lilith said in a whiney tone. She knew she promised to help out, but this was way above what she wanted to do.

"It won't take long," Law said with a smirk.

"Captain! Where are you!" Lilith heard Shachi yelling before she could ask how. Shachi lead over half of the Heart Pirates down into the cellar as Lilith deemed it now.

"Set the money outside of the room."

The crew did as told and Lilith scrunched her face up in confusion. She had been doing that so much today she jokingly worried her face might get stuck like that.

" _ **Room."**_

A gust of wind gently rushed from Law as a pale blue sphere engulfed the entire cellar. Lilith watched with wide eyes, slightly worried about what he was doing.

" _ **Shambles."**_

Instantly the sacks of beli exchanged places with some of the stuff in the room. Lilith stood wide eyed trying to catch up to what just happened.

"Take the junk up to the warship and bring down more bags of money," Law casually said as if he hadn't just teleported items to and fro. There were a few moans from Shachi and Penguin but they did as they were told. Lilith still stood there gaping.

"Wait, wait. What was that? Is that your devil fruit?"

Law gave her a smirk and said nothing as more men came down. Law repeated the process and soon they were off again.

"Would you like to make a deal, Lilith?"

Lilith snapped out of her daze at the alarming question posed by the Dark Doctor.

"Uh, it depends on what it is."

"Are you planning on traveling to the island on the log pose?"

"Well, of course I am."

"I want to give you a lift to the island you're heading to."

"Why?" Lilith asked after a few moments.

"I want all the money we come across during our travel."

Lilith stared at him for a few moments as he dealt with another wave of money.

"Is that all you want?"

Law nodded his head to her as he sat down on a wooden chest. Lilith watched him expertly as he rested his elbows on his knees and his chin in his hands. Lilith sensed no malice, or deception at all in his color swirls. He was calm and excited and… anxious? Did he really want her to travel with them for 3 weeks?

"You're okay with putting up with me for 3 more weeks?" Lilith asked, making sure he knew what he was getting into. Law gave her a curt nod and that was all it took to light Lilith up like a Christmas tree. Lilith rushed over to Law and tackled him with a hug. Law froze up as the attack knocked the wind out of him.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you, Law!" Lilith squealed as she squeezed him tighter. Law grumbled a quiet no problem and awkwardly pat her on the back.

"Didn't know we were interrupting something, Captain," a Heart Pirate teased. Lilith pulled back from Law with a red face. Law only smirked, glad to see that Lilith was completely back to normal now. He stood up from his seat and switched out the gold.

"I-It's nothing like that! Law just offered to give me a ride to the island I need to go to!"

Lilith beamed at the Heart Pirates as cheers erupted.

"Shachi and Penguin. Clear out room 005 for Lilith to use," Law's voice cut through the cheers and his two mechanics

"Yosh!" The two darted off.

"I'm going to have my own room!" Lilith exclaimed as looked at Law. He gave her a nod and Lilith tackled him with another hug. Law froze again and awkwardly patted Lilith on the back, earning snickers from his crew.

"Come on Cap!"

"Hug her back!"

"Yeah!"

Lilith pulled away with a bright red face and mumbled an apology to Law as the crowd booed.

"Didn't I give you orders?" Law asked, sending a glare to his crew which quickly scrambled away with the trash. After a little over half an hour, all of the trash had been switched out with the beli. Lilith noted that Law was slightly sluggish.

" _I wonder what his devil fruit actually does. There was force field and now he's exhausted. Hey wait… he completely ignored me when I asked him!"_

Lilith scrunched up her face towards Law's back. He was now leading her back up to the deck to get rid of the ship. They climbed up to the upper deck of the sub to see the rest of the crew already up top eating a late lunch and drinking to their new bounty.

"How do you normally destroy ships?" Law asked as he sat down and leaned back against Bepo, who was already snoozing. Lilith didn't immediately answer his question but instead she looked up at the large warship. She ran her hand over the weird wood. It was smooth, like it had been polished, but the black was a matte finish. It reflected zero light and Lilith couldn't tell if it had been painted, or if it was naturally like this.

" _This is so weird. I wonder what it is. Don said it was made from something in the New World, so maybe it's just a type of wood. I wonder if Alaric would know something about this…"_

Lilith's thoughts trailed off as she took out the knife that was still attached to her shorts. She jabbed it into the side of the ship and tried to pry some of the wood out, but the knife barely skimmed the surface. She let out a frustrated grunt as she tried to drive it in again.

"God fucking damn it. What is this shit?"

Lilith tried stabbing the wood again, but the tip of the knife broke off.

"UGH!" Lilith screamed out as she tossed the broken knife into the ocean.

"What're you trying to do?" Shachi asked as him and Penguin walked up to her.

"Is this how you destroy the ships?" Penguin teased. Lilith shot him a glare.

"No! Of course not! We're way too close."

"Then why're you trying to stab it?" Shachi asked as he scratched his head.

"I want a piece so I can give it to my friend Alaric. He's real good at this kind of stuff."

"Well, we could get some of the sharper swords-"

" _ **Room. Amputate."**_

In an instant, a large 2 by 2 foot square of the ship was cut from the ship and fell onto the deck in front of Lilith. Her eyes were as wide as saucers as she looked between the piece of wood and Law (who was still resting against Bepo with his eyes closed).

"How the hell… What the hell can you do?" Lilith looked at Law expectantly, but he just flashed her a lazy smirk without opening his eyes. Lilith put her hands on her hips and sent him a glare.

"Well, fine then. If you aren't going to tell me what devil fruit you have, then I won't offer to boost your energy. Which you clearly lost because you used this super mystery devil fruit of yours."

Lilith spun on her heel and picked up the piece of wood. She held it to her chest and she turned back around. Law was staring at her so intently, Lilith froze up. She held his serious gaze, although her eyes were wide.

" _Shit he's scary."_

Lilith slowly relaxed and huffed at him when she didn't sense any actual malice from him.

"Shachi and Penguin, can you show me to the room you cleared out for me?"

She gave them a sweet smile and they were leading her away before Law could protest. They lead her down a few levels and to a room with 005 written on it. Lilith immediately noticed Law's room was a few doors down… At number 001. Lilith rolled her eyes so hard she saw white.

The metal door swung open as Shachi held it for her. She stepped inside and took a look around. A small smile crept on her face as she set down the piece of wood.

On the far side, there was a small metal desk with a small metal chair. They both were sitting under a port hole. On the right wall was a single sized bed with a shotty mattress sitting on top, to which Lilith frowned at. There was another door on the left wall and Lilith immediately went to open it. It held a sink and toilet.

The room was a little small, but it was Lilith's room for the next 3 weeks and she was ecstatic. She hadn't had a space of her own for years. Especially not for three straight weeks.

"It isn't much but all the living spaces are small here."

"We don't spend a lot of time in them anyways."

"It's great," Lilith said with a smile. "I haven't a place to myself in years. I love it."

The two men flashed her a smile.

"Let's get going, shall we?" Lilith said as she pushed past the men and went back onto the deck. Even though it was high noon, everyone was on the upper deck eating and partying. Booze was being passed around and Lilith made a point to get some.

"Didn't Captain tell you not to drink?"

"Oh, I'm fine now. The sun helps to energize me. I might even take a nap out here later!" Lilith said as she flashed the guy from the poker night a smile.

" _Shit… what was his name? Sam? Sammy? Samuel?"_

"I'm glad you know what's best for you, Miss Lilith."

Lilith spun around and gave Law a glare.

"Well, _Doctor Law_. Do you not clear me for drinking then?"

"Not until you take care of the ship," Law flashed her smirk and pulled her drink from her hands. She gaped at him for a few moments then crossed her arms.

"Sure. I can do that. But it won't help with whatever stick crawled up your ass. We need to get this sub moving away from the ship!"

Lilith gave no room for Law to answer as she walked over to the railing. Bepo disappeared under the deck and in a few moments the sub was sailing away from the ship. The air around Lilith darkened, and Lilith held her right hand out, with the palm facing out towards the ship. Her arm was lazily stretched out in front of her, and her posture was relaxed. She had her eyes closed and the darkened area started to grow rapidly.

" _If she's absorbing energy quicker than it can be replaced by the sun, then just how much energy is she absorbing? Does this mean she moves at the speed of light? How can her body even handle that?"_

Law couldn't help but marvel at her powers. He was brought out of his mental list of tests he wanted to run on her when the darkness disappeared. The ship was about 5 kilometers away and Lilith had deemed that far enough.

" _ **Ray."**_

A long pale yellow light shot out of Lilith's hand and struck the ship with such force, the warship was _moved back_ and a large hole was created in the ship. If Law had to guess, the hole was easily the size of the sub.

" _She could take us out in one hit,"_ was the thought that immediately came to Law's mind.

The warship immediately took on water and in a few minutes, the entire ship was under water. The Heart Pirates let out cheers at the sunken ship and Lilith shot them a large smile.

"Your devil fruit is quite a force to be reckoned with."

Lilith raised an eyebrow at Law's sudden compliment. His hazes were as calm as ever so she had no idea what his angle was.

"As long as there aren't fluorescent lights around," she said with a playful glare sent his way. Law gave her a bored expression as he took a sip from her drink. Her glare quickly turned sinister.

"Oh my _God_. First you ask my age, then you take my drink, and now you're drinking it! You're so rude, Trafalgar Law!"

"Well if you want your drink come and get it."

In the half second it took for Lilith to process his challenge and Law to call a room, Lilith called her own attack.

" _ **Defense."**_

Lilith's body was covered in her pale yellow light, acting as a second skin and she watched Law with careful eyes. He quickly unsheathed his sword and cut downwards, slicing everyone on the ship as he called shambles.

Lilith stared in shock as body pieces of his crew floated all around her.

" _Why isn't there blood?"_

Law also couldn't hide the shock on his face when everyone _but_ Lilith was cut in half. It was harmless of course, but it wasn't working on Lilith. The shock on Lilith's face quickly morphed into the same smirk from when she was making him strip at poker. Lilith slowly made her way over to Law; her hips were swaying and there was a clear confidence in her walk.

She plucked her drink from Law's hands as he sent her a glare.

" _ **Drink?"**_ Lilith said in the same tone as she used to call her moves, but now she had a shit eating smirk plastered to her face. She took a long sip and let out an exaggerated _'aaah'_. Law's glare deepened, but Lilith was close enough to see the excitement dancing in his eyes.

"I'll drop mine, if you drop yours," Lilith teased with a playful wink. Law's glare shifted to a playful smirk and his crew was put back together. Blue and yellow faded from the deck of the sub and Law resheathed his sword. Lilith gave him a smile and walked over to the barrel of unnamed alcohol.

She filled up her glass and another, and then made her way back to Law. The rest of the crew was slowly getting back to normal. Lilith chuckled under her breath as they stumbled around trying to get their own drinks and working order of their legs at the same time.

She handed Law his glass of alcohol and gave him a timid smile. He took it, silently calling a truce for the time being. They shared another moment for all of 5 seconds before Penguin and Sammy (the guy from poker) draped their arms around Lilith.

"We should toast our new alliance!"

"Yeah!" Shachi said as he jumped over Sammy to try and get his arm around Lilith.

"It's not every day we get a girl on the ship!"

"We never get a girl on the ship!"

Lilith giggled as the crowd around Law and Lilith grew. Law raised his glass in the air, signalling silence for his toast.

"To our alliance," Law declared as he held Lilith's soft gaze. She gave him a warm and genuine smile as she tapped his glass with her.

"To new friends!" The rest of the Heart Pirates shouted, and Law almost corrected them. This was an alliance, not a friendship. But the way Lilith's face lit up was enough for him to keep quiet and clank Lilith's glass a second time. Despite the red flags that were flashing in Law's head, he couldn't quite see the downside of this arrangement. Something just felt right.

Law was looking forward to the next three weeks.

* * *

The party had long since reached its peak. There were 4 or 5 drunks still on the deck, reveling in their time off, but most of the others had left to finish up their chores or duties. The sun was still an hour out from setting and Lilith didn't know what to do.

She had debated talking to Law about his powers but he had disappeared under the deck long before everyone else and she wasn't quite willing to go under yet. The sun felt too nice at the moment and she sure wanted to enjoy it while she could.

At the moment, she was sipping on her mug of still unnamed alcohol as she sat down on the edge of the deck. She was straddling the bars with her legs dangling over the sides. The spray of the sea wasn't enough to affect her and felt nice against her hot skin. She closed her eyes to revel in the moment. She had never felt so safe in one place before.

"I see you're enjoying the sun."

Lilith glanced behind her at Law who was strolling over to her. He had somehow gotten on deck and grabbed himself a glass without her realizing it, but Lilith was mostly distracted by the black wife beater he was wearing instead of his hoodie.

" _Jesus Christ. Scratch being one of the Supernovas. He has_ _got_ _to be one of the seven deadly sins."_

"Of course. It's my main source of energy besides sleeping," Lilith said instead of voicing her real thoughts.

"Does it really affect you that much?"

Lilith was silent for a few moments as she took a swig from her drink.

"I used to think it didn't, but now I'm realizing that my devil fruit plays more of a role in my life than I originally thought. I had no idea I was constantly absorbing energy."

"I think it was because how low on energy you were when I found you."

Lilith hummed in response as they both took a drink. A comfortable silence spread over them.

"Law," Lilith said suddenly as she shifted to face him. Law glanced at her through the side of his eyes as he took a drink. Anxiety bubbled up as Lilith fidgeted with her hands for a few moments.

Was she going to cancel their alliance? Was she going to complain about how perverted his men were? Was she going to complain about their earlier scuffle-

"I wanted to thank you, Law."

To say Law was caught off guard was an understatement at this point.

"I haven't enjoyed myself this thoroughly in a long time. Not since I was working under Alaric. I really do appreciate everything you're doing, Law."

"Who's Alaric," Law found himself asking. A soft smile adorned Lilith's features as she looked down at her mug thoughtfully.

"He was… no. He is the man who raised me. He taught me everything I know. I learned how to focus my Haki through him. I learned how to kill through him. I learned how to not take anything from anyone through him."

"Was he the one who saved you from slavery?"

Lilith shook her head at the question. It was more to chase away the memories that threatened to creep up than an actual answer to Law's question.

"No. A storm hit one of the ships I was being transferred on and I ended up on a large island. Long story short, things didn't work out there and Alaric took me in. I joined his crew, well… Gang. He isn't a pirate. He runs a gang on Belfry Island and I joined it. From there he built me up as a person."

Law nodded his head as he took a few moments to process this.

" _Was Lilith still in this gang?"_ was the most prominent question. He didn't ask it though. Quite frankly, he was scared of her answer.

" _Why am I scared of her answer? Who cares if she's apart of some crew?"_ Law mentally scolded himself.

"Are you still a part of his crew?"

When Lilith shook her head, Law felt more relieved than he could imagine. Instead of dwelling on those thoughts, he pressed on.

"I heard you mention his name before."

"Yah, I'm going to give that hunk of wood to him and see what he can unearth about it."

Law nodded at her answer and they sat in comfortable silence for a few moments staring over the waters of the Grand Line.

"So how does a doctor become a pirate, if you don't mind me asking."

"Complications."

"Mmm, yes," Lilith said giving him a sideways glance. "Playing the mysterious card always works out well in the end, doesn't it?"

It was Law's turn to give her sideways glance, giving her a glare, but to his surprise, she was calm.

" _She's always calm though,"_ Law mindlessly thought.

"Why are you so interested?" Law asked instead.

"Well, I know your dad was the best doctor around and that you're a doctor because of him. But I don't think it's normal for a doctor to wield a sword the same size of me. It interests me."

Law let out a low chuckle.

"Fair point. I joined a pirate crew at a very young age and learned a lot about the world. I left them when I was 12 and started my own journey."

Lilith gave him a soft smile, not wanting to press further. She could see the deep blue/black and red colors swarming around his head and she didn't want to pop that bubble. Those were the colors she had first learned about.

"Life is pretty shitty, yah know?"

Law gave Lilith a nod as they both downed their drinks. They sat in silence, both thinking over parts of their past that they haven't talked about in a while. They probably wouldn't talk about it, at least not for the moment.

"Are you feeling better?" Law asked Lilith trying to find a distraction.

"Yah. I think the fluorescent lighting has worked it's way out of my body. I feel back to normal again."

"Good. I'll be sure we resurface periodically so you don't end up like that again."

"Thanks, Law. That's really nice of you."

"I've been creating a timeline of your stay, so I would like to sample more blood."

"Sure."

Lilith followed Law down to the infirmary again and she sat on one of the cots. She sat still as Law shifted into doctor mode and took some blood from the inside of her arm.

"Press this to your arm," Law said and handed Lilith a small piece of cotton when he was done. She did as told and watched as he glided from the cot back to his desk to fidget with the vile of blood. Lilith swung her feet slightly watching the pale colors swirl around his head.

Lilith had decided she loved seeing Law like this. He was so at ease, and it was relieving to see him like this. Over the past few days, she could see his normal relaxed posture was more of a facade than how he really felt. His eyes were always scanning, and he never sat down in once place for very long.

Unless he was in the infirmary.

"Do you need something, Lilith-ya?"

Lilith snapped back to reality and panicked slightly.

"Uh… I was just, uh, wondering where I can shower. Yah. The room I have doesn't have one, and I don't know where the communal ones are. I can use the one here in the infirmary, I guess."

A ghost of a smirk danced on Law's face at Lilith round-about way of avoiding a lie.

"This shower only has cold water."

Law could _feel_ Lilith pouting at his back.

"Why in the world would you install a shower with no hot water?"

"Don't ask me, ask my mechanics," Law replied cooly. Lilith let out a small groan.

"Well then, do the other showers have hot water?"

When Law glanced at Lilith over his shoulder and kept quiet, she started to panic.

"Wait, wait! No please don't tell me you guys constantly take cold showers. That has got to be some sort of torture. No wonder they call you the Doctor of Darkness. I get that you're from the North Blue, but you can't possibly like cold showers that much."

Lilith's ramblings were interrupted with Law's chuckle. He thoroughly enjoyed her reactions. They were so animated and pure.

"The other showers do have hot water. You can use the one in my room since I don't want my men to be tempted to _interrupt_ you."

Lilith turned redder than a tomato.

"That, uhm… I would really appreciate it."

Lilith fidgeted with the fraying edges of her shorts as Law continued to work at his desk. After a few minutes, Law spoke up again.

"If you're going to shower, I would appreciate it if you did it now."

"Oh, right. Thanks!" Lilith said and made a beeline to Law's room. She spotted a door on the opposite side of his bed and quickly slipped inside. Sadly, there wasn't a lock on his door.

" _Well, at least I know he'll be able to hear me if I'm showering,"_ Lilith thought as she stripped off her clothing.

" _Doesn't mean that'll stop him from coming in,"_ Lilith added on with a frown.

Lilith stepped into the shower and turned the spray onto hot and gave it a few moments before hopping in. She got to work on her clothes first and grabbed some soap from one of the in-shower shelves. She looked over the bottle.

' _Antibacterial All-Purpose Soap'_

She rolled her eyes at the ridiculousness of it and popped it open to take a sniff. It smelled exactly how the infirmary smelled, but on steroids. It was clean and sterile, and completely _bland_.

If Lilith rolled her eyes any harder, they would've fallen out of her head.

Regardless, she scrubbed at her clothes to get it clean. Her mind slowly drifted as she shifted into auto pilot.

" _Law doesn't really strike me as the kind of guy to come in while I'm showering though. He doesn't strike me as the kind to go out of his way for others either. But why is he helping me? Is it truly because of the money? Okay… It_ _was_ _a lot of money,"_ Lilith thought.

" _His emotions tend to be on the darker side, but I don't think it's because he's a prick… Well, maybe he is a little, but not enough to do something like that. He's so serene when he's working in his infirmary though."_

Lilith set her clothes aside as she stepped into the shower to let the water run over her body now. She grabbed some of that terrible soap and lathered up her hair and body to get a squeaky clean as she could.

" _Shouldn't be hard with this stupid soap. I'll have to say, this soap fits Law. I wonder if he makes everyone shower with it."_

Lilith quickly stepped out of the shower and released some energy to dry herself and her clothes. She slipped them on and stepped out of the small bathroom as she tucked in her shirt. When she looked up, halfway through, she noticed Law laying out on his bed with a book in his hands.

"I thought you were going to be busy in the infirmary?" Lilith asked with a skeptical gaze. He knew she was showering so why did he come to his room?

"I changed my mind," Law replied without looking up from his book. Lilith narrowed her eyes at the man and crossed her arms. She decided against saying anything further and walked out of his room with a huff.

" _I guess it_ _is_ _his room,"_ Lilith thought.

"Is something the matter, Lilith-ya?"

Lilith paused at the door for a split second. It wasn't his question, per se that got her to pause. No it was his playful tone.

" _Probably because he came from the infirmary."_

"Your soap is quite terrible, Law. Other than that, thank you for your shower."

Lilith stepped out of his room and made it back to hers. She stepped through the doors and pressed the small button by the door for the lights, and immediately shut them off again.

" _Nothing but damn fluorescent lighting."_

She walked over to the bathroom and pressed the button there, happy to find that the light wasn't as blinding.

" _If I keep it on, and keep the door open slightly, I won't be left in the dark and I won't have to use that damn overhead light,"_ Lilith thought as she flipped the light off.

She walked over to the porthole and glanced out to see that they had submerged in all the time it took her to get ready for bed. She watched a few fishes swim by before turning off the bathroom light and flopping down on the bed.

If she wasn't so tired, she would've complained about the terrible mattress, but once again, Lilith was out before she could even register the springs sticking into her back.

* * *

Once again, Law was trying to get into the book he had picked up before Lilith made her way onto the ship. He had started the tests in his infirmary, and since they would take a few hours to fully process, he decided to kill time with this book.

Sadly, he hadn't been able to concentrate again because it was not the most interesting thing on his sub at the moment.

" _Lilith-ya is particular,"_ Law decided.

She was expressive, and wore her heart on her sleeve. Whether she was playing poker, sitting with him on the deck, or in the infirmary, or even just eating, he could read her like a book.

" _Why is that so interesting? People who bare everything to the world are boring."_

Law knew Lilith wasn't boring though.

" _But why?"_ Law questioned as he laid his book down on his chest, temporarily giving up again. He laid his head back on the pillow and stared up at the metal ceiling. When his thoughts drifted again, he immediately went to her tattoos.

" _They're lovely,"_ Law admitted. They were detailed and clear and Law thought they were exquisite.

" _She said that the flowers weren't to cover up her scars, and surprisingly I believe that. I wonder why she gets them from different islands she's been to…"_

Law's thoughts trailed off as his eyes closed. His mind shifted to her spine tattoo. What did it say? Something along the lines of wetting her sword and vengeance.

" _Not the kind of quote a girl gets on her body. Although she does kill slavers, so maybe that's what it's related to."_

Law's mind slowly slipped into sleep, as he continued to ponder Lilith until his mind went blank.


	6. In Which Lilith Gets Put To Work

**A/N: This is kind of a crap chapter haha not my best work but I swear the next one will be better. Not much Law but I'm trying to incorporate the whole crew, because I wished they got more time in the anime and manga. I also needed a platform to talk more about Lilith's Haki and empathy so here we go.**

 **Reviews make me super happy! Shout out to the people who've reviewed already. You guys are the absolute best! I'm going to try and finish up the next chapter over the weekend and then our little group will be off to their first island!**

 **Ps. I hsould've mentioned this before, but it takes place before Law's introduced at Sabaody lol oops. If anything isn't clear feel free to ask! The next chapter should clear up a lot about Lilith's past and Law's past.**

Chapter 6:

Alternate name: In which the author tries to develop characters

"Lilith-chan~!"

Lilith snapped her head up from her oatmeal and fruit to see Shachi and Penguin running into the galley. Her face lit up at the bright colors surrounding their heads and she waved at them. They jumped down on the bench, wedging their way on either side of her.

"Good morning to you too," Lilith said with a large grin on her face.

"Did Captain tell you where you're stationed today?" Penguin asked leaning closer to Lilith.

"You should come help us," Shachi said with a deep blush breaking out over his face. He was just as close to Lilith's face though, causing Lilith to giggle.

"We always need help from a pretty lady like you," Penguin finished their little spiel with a pleading smile on his face.

"Oh well, I'm-"

"Captain said for her to help me plan out our trip, then he said she needs to help with laundry," Bepo said in a small voice from the end of the table.

"Oh come on!" Both mechanics yelled. A storm cloud started over Bepo's head and Lilith hit the two boy's heads.

"Stop making Bepo sad, you two."

Lilith stood up from the bench and walked over to Bepo, with her bowl still in her hands.

"When do you need my help, Bepo-san?"

"Whenever you're done," Bepo said immediately straightening up. Lilith plopped down next to him and sent him a wide grin.

"I'll be done in just a few moments, if you can wait."

Bepo gave her a nod and dug into the rest of her breakfast. She could hear Shachi and Penguin mumbling something about their Captain not being fair.

" _How can they say those things? That's not how a pirate ship works. Captain's words are final. I mean, this is a strange ship, so who knows. At least they aren't saying to his face, I guess."_

Lilith pulled herself from her thoughts as she finished off her bowl. Bepo quickly stood up.

"Follow me!"

Lilith left her bowl for the kitchen duty to take care of, and quickly followed after Bepo. She was staring at the back of his head as she walked behind him, given that Lilith had no idea where she was going. Instead of trying to note where she was being led (like she really should've been), she watched as pale golden-orange colors swirled around Bepo's head. Lilith got a strong sense of something between optimism and anticipation from those colors.

" _He must really love his job."_

Bepo pushed open the large navigation room (the room that held the periscope from before). Lilith stepped in, and took a good look around it this time. There were all kind of screens and gadgets on the far wall behind the periscope. The right and left walls were covered in cubbies holding all kinds of parchments and maps.

Her eyes drifted to the table in the middle and walked over to see several maps laid out and pieced together to form a full map. Lilith put her hands on her hips, in a determined fashion, and gave Bepo a smile.

"So, what is it you need me for?"

"Captain wants some kind of time frame, but I don't how long it'll take us to get anywhere," Bepo replied with a storm cloud over his head. His sad blues, hit Lilith like a wall and her smile immediately turned into a frown.

"Hey now. That's what I'm here for. Let's see what we can figure out, yah?"

Bepo nodded his head slowly, but the hues didn't leave the poor bear's head. Lilith's frown deeped and she walked over to him.

"Bepo, sweetie, what's got your so down?"

After a few moments of silence, Lilith put a comforting hand on his arm.

"I just want to help Captain and it seems I can't."

Lilith rubbed small circles on his arm.

"I promise you can. He wouldn't have gotten this far without you, I'm sure. There's no reason to doubt yourself so much."

"I'm sorry," Bepo said and the storm cloud was back. Lilith's frown deepened because she really had no idea what to do to help. She wasn't too clued in on their relationship. She really had no insight on how they met, or where they came from. She knew that Law cared about Bepo. She could see it in the colors when he interacted with the bear.

" _When in doubt, speak the truth, I guess."_

"Bepo, can I tell you something?"

Bepo nodded his head.

"You know how my Kenbunshoku Haki allows me empathy for others? I see emotions in the form of colors and feel the feelings of others around me."

Bepo gave another nod, this time looking at Lilith's face. She gave him a soft smile.

"I know he doesn't show it often, but he does care about you. In fact, he cares so much about you, it seems out of character for him. Your navigation skills have gotten you guys through the most part of the Grand Line, and that's no easy feat. Even though, Law doesn't show it, he sees you as a valuable member of the Heart Pirates."

The light in Bepo's eyes was there for just a moment before it was taken over by another storm cloud.

"But why did he ask you to help me with my job?"

"Because Belfry is my hometown and I've actually traveled in these waters before. He doesn't doubt your ability, he just wants you to have all the resources you can."

Slowly, Lilith watched the colors of blue fade from Bepo's head and that golden-orange returned. After a few moments of an inner conversation, Bepo popped back to life.

"You're right, Lilith-chan. It was silly of me to doubt Captain. We need to get to work."

Lilith beamed at Bepo's new mood and shot him a large smile.

"Okay, tell me what you need help with."

"From my calculations, Attwell looks to be 5 days away, but there's an island between here and there. It's the one we were heading to before that Warship. Do you know about it?"

"What's the name?"

Bepo pulled out a black log book with the words 'Paradise' sprawled over the front and flipped a few pages.

"Osttown. It's a late summer's island, but that's all I have on it."

Lilith put her hand to her chin, in deep thought, trying to remember anything she could, but nothing came to mind. She gave Bepo a shrug.

"It must be small, because I don't think I've ever heard of it."

Bepo's shoulders slumped, but much to Lilith's surprise, no storm cloud formed.

"After that we head to Attwell, right?" Lilith asked, trying to keep the conversation rolling. Bepo gave her a nod.

"Well, I've never been to that island, but I've heard of it being a huge spring island. Plenty of supplies and shops and whatnot. Their flowers are widely known too. I've always wanted to go," Lilith said with a small smile.

"Do you know how long it takes for the log post to set?"

Lilith shook her head.

"Well, the next island is Belfry. According to the map, it'll take us 4 days to get there."

Lilith nodded her head.

"Belfry is huge. It's got a population of like 10,000 and the Golden Skulls are the people who take care of the townspeople. Normally, they're real particular about who stops at their island, but you've got me, so we can stop. It'll take 72 hours for the post to set. When we sail, swim? Up to the docks, I think we should be surfaced and I'll be on the upper deck so people can see me."

"I think that's a good idea. My log book says that the local gang takes no prisoners."

Lilith let out a full bodied chuckle when Bepo ended his sentence with a shiver.

"They're not as menacing now. Alaric's expanded his business to more than underground musings, so he's opened up trade with merchants. He just has a slight problem with Pirates. Or Marines."

"There aren't any Marines?"

Lilith shook her head.

"Nope. Alaric takes care of his own."

Bepo nodded his head and wrote down what she had said. Lilith watched in amazement, not knowing how in the world Bepo's giant paws were able to hold a pen.

"There's an island after that, called Esterash, but the log book doesn't have anything about it."

"Yah, that's just a small island with a volcano on it. I don't think the log post even needs to settle."

"There's Newlay after that," Bepo said as he kept writing stuff down.

"Yah, that's an island we'll need to stop on. It takes, uhm, 50 something hours for it set there? It's a winter island and the water around it has been known to freeze so that's something to be careful about. There _is_ a Marine base there, but they don't do much of anything because of how cold the island is."

Bepo nodded his head and Lilith waited patiently for him to ask another question.

"I think there's 3 island after that, but they're all very small."

Lilith nodded her head.

"There are villages there, but they're not very big. There's supposedly a sea monster that rules the waters around it. I can't remember if you need to set your log post on one of the islands or not. I haven't been that way in quite a while."

"But that's the direction the Log Post's go. How can you not do that?"

"My line of work hasn't brought me in the direction of the New World yet, so I've only gone as far as Newlay. I haven't been to Newlay in at least a year though."

Bepo nodded as he scribbled more down. It was a good few minutes before there was a loud knock on the door.

"Bepo! Are you done with Lilith-chan? I need to get started on the laundry!" an unfamiliar voice sounded through the door.

"Yes, come in."

Lilith turned her head and saw a muscular man in a boiler suit push through the door. He was just a few inches taller than Lilith, with shaggy brown hair. He flashed her a small smirk.

"I'm Terry, It's nice to finally meet you, Lilith-chan."

She gave him a large smile and a nod.

"Are you sure that's all you need from me, Bepo-san?"

Bepo gave her nod without looking up from his notebook and Lilith popped up from her chair. Terry held the door for her, but took the lead down the hallway.

"So, Lilith-chan. Do you have a boyfriend?"

Lilith let out an airy laugh at the ridiculous question.

"I don't have time for nonsense like that, Terry-san. Why do you ask?"

"Well, the whole crew has been wondering, and I just thought I would ask," he replied smoothly with a wink. Lilith responded with another laugh.

"So what's your job on the sh-sub, Terry-san?"

"I take care of the laundry with Greg. And please, just call me Terry, Lilith-chan," He said with another wink. Lilith let out a slightly less enthusiastic laugh this time.

" _Hopefully Greg isn't like this,"_ Lilith mused as they stepped into a large room. Lilith was immediately hit with the smell of detergent. The left wall had 4 large machines on it, which were all on and _loud_ , and the far wall was lined with a desk.

But what sunk Lilith's heart were the piles and piles of grey boiler suits piled up everywhere.

"Greg! I brought in help!"

An older man with a full head of grey hair turned from the far desk with his lips drawn into a thin line. He was about the same height as Terry, but he was obviously built from years (probably decades) of hard manual labor. He walked up to the two and gave Lilith a good look up and down.

"So you're the girl we fished from the sea. I hope you're good with a needle. The damn third floor mechanics just sent up a ton of suits with tears so we need to get to work."

Lilith followed after Greg to the far desk. He gave her a needle and large spool of thread.

"You didn't answer me. Do you know how to sew?"

"Yes sir," Lilith said with as much respect she could muster.

"Good. It's pretty straight forward. Fix the tears, and then put them in the wash pile in front of a washer. Then pick up another and do the same."

The two shared a nod and they immediately got back to work. Lilith pulled up a chair and started mending the suits. It wasn't even 20 seconds before Terry spoke up.

"So, Lilith-chan. Where are you from?" Terry asked as he pulled up a chair next to Lilith. He pulled up just inside of Lilith's personal bubble and she gave him a sideways glance. She refocused on her work before answering him.

"Oh, uhm. I don't really know," Lilith said. "Like I said the other day, I was kidnapped when I was 6 so I don't really remember much before that."

Lilith jumped when Terry put a hand on her shoulder. He gave her the best pity look he could muster but Lilith wasn't hit with the feeling of pity. Instead the pale green and red that swirled around his head meant he was definitely trying to get brownie points from her.

Instead of pointing it out, though, she turned back to the suit.

"It's fine. I've grown to live with it. Besides, I consider Belfry to be my home. It's where I learned how to be human again."

Terry held his hand on Lilith's shoulder for an extended time before withdrawing it.

"How long were you a slave?" Greg spoke up, surprising Lilith and Terry.

"I believe I was there for 6 years," Lilith replied, glancing at Greg. She could see deep red fury swirl around him with deep blue hues of sadness cling closer to his head. Lilith's face frowned at this but she didn't press.

"That had to be rough," Terry said putting his hand between Lilith's shoulder blades now.

"Rough is not the proper way to describe what I went through," Lilith replied as she politely pulled away from his touch. Terry took that as an invitation to slide his hand down lower on her back. Lilith was about to snap at him but she was promptly interrupted.

"The girl obviously doesn't want you touching her, Terry, so quit it."

Terry scowled at Greg but removed his hand anyways. Silence passed over the three as they concentrated on patching the boiler suits.

There wasn't a clock to keep track of time, but Lilith counted how many times Terry glanced over at her.

" _45."_

It was every time he finished a stitch or he got up or if she got up or if she moved too much. It made Lilith uncomfortable and she did her best to ignore him.

She ended up facing away from Terry and let her mind space out. The boiler suits quickly started to morph together as time dragged on. Somewhere around the 10th one, a voice sounded through the funnel system.

" _LUNCH IS SERVED!"_

The echo hadn't even died down before Terry popped up from his seat.

"Lilith-chan! Let's go get lunch!"

"Oh, uh, Greg-san, are you coming with us?" Lilith looked to the older man.

"I'll be up in a little bit. I could use your help if you're up for it," Greg said as he pulled some more boiler suits out of the dryer.

"Okay! I'll see you later, Terry-san."

Terry sent a glare at Greg before disappearing out of the room. Lilith helped him fold the fresh suits, and a comfortable silence settled between them.

"Alright. I'm sure you're safe now, so let's go get some lunch."

Lilith gave him a warm smile and they walked the halls to the galley. The entire room was packed full of people but Lilith made her way through the line and followed Greg to sit down. They ate in silence for a few minutes before he spoke up.

"You don't have to sit with me, you know."

Lilith looked up at Greg mid-bite slightly confused.

"Why wouldn't I want to sit with you?"

"I'm an old man," Greg stated as he continued to eat. Lilith let out an airy laugh.

"Old man? Nonsense. You've got to be in your prime."

Lilith gave Greg her signature grin and to her surprise she saw a flash of bright yellow flash over Greg's head. He shook his head at her antics and a comfortable silence fell over them.

"Why are you really sitting with me?"

Lilith gave him a shrug as she finished chewing her food.

"Well, you're a level headed guy and it's soothing. People's emotions rub off on me because of my Kenbunshoku Haki. You're the most normal person in this room. Plus I need to follow you back to the laundry room."

It was Greg's turn to stare at Lilith mid-bite. Lilith just gave him her signature grin which earned her another flare of yellow. They continued in silence for a bit before someone walked over to their table.

Lilith looked up to see a tall guy staring intently at her. He had rusty red curly hair that was held back by a beige bandana with the Heart Pirate symbol on it. He moved his gaze to Greg before he spoke.

"Captain needs to do a check up on her. She'll be back to help you out after. Are you done eating?"

The last part was directed at Lilith but she had to swallow her food first.

"Uh, I still have like half a plate left…" she said gesturing at her plate.

Instead of leaving like a normal person would, the mystery man kept standing there. Lilith tried to eat her food as fast as possible, but there was just so much she could eat at once. Greg let out a low chuckle at how awkward the atmosphere was.

"Lilith, this is Marcel. He's the second best doctor here. He works directly under Captain in the infirmary."

"It's very nice to meet you, Marcel-san," Lilith said with a large smile. Marcel gave her a nod in return, which made Lilith finish off the rest of her food quicker.

"I'll see you later, Greg!" Lilith said as she ran after Marcel, who had somehow started to the door without her noticing. The two walked in silence as they reached the infirmary in record time.

"Captain, she's here."

"Sit on the cot, Lilith-ya," Law said without turning around. She plopped down on the one closest to Law and frowned at the shades of red and green swirling around his head.

" _He's… annoyed? And pensive? And frustrated? And wow. He's tired. Very tired. I wonder if he even slept last night."_

Law pulled out a bunch of different things and flipped a black journal closed. He swiveled in in his stool to face Lilith and she furrowed her brows at the dark circles that had grown under his eyes. They seemed to pop in contrast to his white lab coat.

"Let me see your arm."

Lilith held out her left arm and he quickly drew blood. He swiveled back to his desk, not sparing another glance at her.

"Marcel-ya, get her blood pressure, temperature, and Lilith-ya if I could have a strand or two of hair to look at that would be great."

Without saying anything Lilith pulled a few hairs from her head and Marcel wrapped her right arm to check her blood pressure. Lilith watched with worry as Law's colors didn't change to pale soft colors, like they normally did whenever Law was working in the infirmary.

After she pulled the thermometer out of her mouth, she decided to voice her concerns.

"Are you okay Law?"

Law paused in his writing for a few seconds before continuing on.

"I am fine, Lilith-ya. You're free to go if Marcel is done."

"Are you sure you're okay?"

Law gave her a hard glare over his shoulders and turned back to his work. Lilith let out a long sigh, realizing that was going to be her answer. She hopped off the cot and placed the strands on the table.

"Well, I'm here if you want to talk, Law. Marcel, how do I get back to the laundromat?"

"A right, down the stairs then two lefts. It should be the 4th door on the right."

Lilith gave him a nod and disappeared from the room.

Law kept his attention on the blood samples as they spun in the medical machine, but his mind was somewhere completely different. His mind drifted anywhere from how he was going to harness Lilith's healing powers to Corazon's death.

It was troublesome.

He had been like this ever since Lilith had left last night. He hadn't gotten any sleep and he couldn't even distract himself with a good book. He had debated on fixing himself a sleeping concoction, but he wasn't a huge fan of experimenting on himself.

And Lilith's little visit earlier was bringing up a whole new set of questions.

" _Why was she asking about if I was okay? Why's it any of her business. Why does it even matter to her? How did she know I'm having problems? Oh…"_

Law shifted his eyes to the journal as he thought over Lilith's strange Haki powers.

" _Still… she shouldn't be allowed to just read other people whenever she wants,"_ Law thought with a scowl.

Who was she to read into Law? Who was she to pry into his life? She didn't know him and he wasn't going to tell her. She had no right.

" _She's temporary. Just because she can read other people's emotions doesn't mean she has a right to pry into someone's life like this."_

Law sat at his desk fuming for a few more minutes, with Marcel's rummaging behind him as welcome background noise. He pinched the bridge of his nose when Lilith drifted back into his mind.

" _She promised to listen twice now,"_ Law couldn't help but think.

" _No. She has no right to try and pry. What I went through isn't any of her business. She's temporary. None of this matters. Does she have ulterior motives-"_

"Cap, are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine!" Law said slamming his hand down on the desk. He stared in shock at his clenched fist and didn't dare turn around to look at Marcel.

"You're relieved for the day, Marcel-ya."

Law cringed as he heard Marcel rush out of the infirmary. He let out a long sigh and ran his hand over his face. He flipped through the journal to where he had sketched Lilith and leaned back in his chair. He stared at it for several long minutes before letting out another sigh.

"What is that girl doing to me?"

Law let his head drop back and closed his eyes.

" _Is it her empathy that's making me feel like this? Maybe because she gave me some of her power it's changed how I think. Or what I think about. I haven't been able to stop thinking about my parents and Lami. Lami…"_

Law was brought out of his musings when the timer went off for the blood samples. He shoved his thoughts aside to focus on shifting through Lilith's blood. He'd be damned if he let this get to him.

It had taken Lilith 4 tries, 3 different sets of directions, and one random Heart Pirate physically walking her, before she got back to the laundromat.

"Don't worry, Lilith-chan, you'll get the hang of the sub."

The Random Heart pirate gave her a bright smile, and she gladly returned it.

"Hopefully! But thank you again!"

Lilith made her way over to her original seat and picked up a suit to start on it.

"You get lost, girl?" Greg asked without looking up from his work. Lilith gave an airy laugh at his teasing question.

"Yah, the walls all look the same. Have you guys had to send a search party for anyone?"

"Nope, that title's still up for you to claim."

Lilith and Greg shared a laugh at his joke but Lilith could _feel_ Terry fuming beside her.

"If you need help getting around, I can always escort you wherever you need."

Lilith immediately shook her head.

"Oh no. I need to learn my way around somehow."

Terry went to protest but Greg spoke up.

"So, girl, how long are you going to be with us?"

"Well, Bepo-san and I mapped out the next two or so weeks. We still have the eternal post I found, but since you guys still need to log the islands, we're making a few pit stops. It just depends on how long Law wants to keep me around I guess."

Greg nodded his head a bit and the three sat in silence as they worked. Lilith could feel Terry still taking glances at her, but she did her best to ignore them. After several hours and Lilith learning how hard it is to get out oil stains, Greg finally dismissed her.

"Alright. I think that should do it. Didn't those two mechanics tell you to help them out?"

"Shachi and Penguin? Yah. They said they needed help with something or other…"

"Well, since you need help getting there-"

"Don't be ridiculous," Greg said as he lifted yet another monstrous pile of wet clothes into the dryer. "If you go down the stairs to the right, I'm sure she'll be able to hear them."

"Oh thanks Greg-san!" Lilith said as she quickly made her way out of the room before Terry could follow her out. She made an immediate right and walked down the flight of stairs. As soon as her head cleared the second floor, she could already hear metal things clanging together and cuss words flying left and right. Lilith walked down the hall to the large room on the end and pushed it open.

A large grin spread over her face as she saw Penguin throwing tools at Jed.

"I've told you not to scare me like that!"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Jed said with a small smirk on his face. He tried his best to dodge the wrenches Penguin was throwing at him and Shachi was cracking up on the floor.

"What did I miss?"

Lilith voice made all three guys jump in the air.

"GOD DAMN IT!" Penguin shouted only making Shachi and Jed double over once more.

"Who keeps- Oh Lilith-chan!" Penguin said as he quickly put the wrench down.

"Is this how the head mechanics of the Heart Pirates tend to their submarine?"

"Jed and Shachi are always pulling some kind of stupid prank on me," Penguin said with the saddest puppy eyes she had ever seen. He ran over to Lilith and wrapped his arms around her in mock sadness. She patted him on the head as she shoved him off her.

"Don't blame us!"

"Yeah! It's not our fault you scare easily!" Shachi added on. Penguin sent the duo a glare from behind Lilith who was doing a poor job at containing her giggles. Penguin picked up another tool and chunked it at the two with alarming speed. It hit Shachi in the stomach putting the group in another bout of laughter. Shachi picked up the discarded tool and slung it at Penguin, which meant it was heading straight for Lilith too.

While Penguin ducked to avoid the _'weapon'_ , Lilith just caught the tool before it came too close to her face.

"Woah!"

"That was cool!"

"How did you do that, Lilith-chan?" Jed asked.

"I have the normal aspects of Kenbunshoku Haki too," Lilith said with an airy laugh.

"Can you teach us how to do that?"

"Oh well… It's hard to awaken it. The only way I saw Alaric awaken it in others was to attack them. It's, uhm, very intensive and I don't think your Captain would like it if I started attacking his crew."

The three men slumped over in defeat.

"I'm sorry! We can talk to him, but he's not in the best mood right now…"

"Why do you say that?"

"Well, I saw him earlier, and his emotions were… I don't know how to describe it. Normally he's calm when he's in the infirmary, but today he wasn't."

A somber silence spread over the group and Lilith shifted uncomfortably.

"It probably isn't a good idea to talk to him then."

"Yeah, when Cap gets this way, we steer clear of him for a little while."

"I feel like we should be able to do something though. No one should be like-"

"No," Shachi said, cutting Lilith off. "We've tried but it only makes him worse. Captain's more of a loner than the rest of us."

"I know you want to help, but trust me, Lilith-chan. There isn't anything you can do."

Lilith frowned at the news, not really believing it. Her Kenbunshoku Empathy gave her a leg up on normal people when it came to talking with others. Maybe his men couldn't help, but she was sure she could.

"How did your powers awaken?" Shachi asked out of the blue.

"Oh, uh. My time as a slave was really bad. It awakened because I needed to avoid my masters as best as I could. Seeing their emotions helped me avoid the ones who were in a bad mood, so I didn't get beat up as bad."

"Was it really that bad that it awakened your Haki?" Jed asked. Lilith gave him a curt nod, hoping he'd drop the subject.

"Lilith-chan, I'm so sorry."

"It's fine now, so there's no need to worry," Lilith reassured with a smile. She didn't want to worry these mechanics though, so she decided to change the subject.

"Well, enough of that. What should we do in the meantime?"


End file.
